The Defenders of Hogwarts: Year Two
by GoldenRose29
Summary: Another year is about to rock Scorpius Malfoy, Hope Fawley, Rose Weasley, and Al Potter's worlds. However, before they can leave their homes, strange dreams & attacks happen, endangering their families. And when they get to school they learn that students have disappeared & are running away. What will happen to this tight group of friends as secrets are revealed & events unfold?
1. The European Quidditch Cup

Chapter One: The European Quidditch Cup

"Three…Two…One!" Harry yelled. Suddenly everyone holding onto the bent crowbar felt a sharp jerk behind their navel and was yanked through the air. Rose felt her feet slam onto a grassy slope and nearly fell into her cousin, Al. James roared with laughter when he saw Hugo and Lily fall in a tangled mess of limbs and bash into Teddy. Meanwhile, a wizard dressed in a windbreaker and striped harem pants checked them off a long list that fell to the ground.

"Group 675 from Godric's Hollow," he said in his wheezy voice. "Potters, your campsite is number 43 and so is yours, Weasleys."

"Could you tell us where the Malfoys are staying?" Al inquired.

"They aren't on my list. Budge along, now, we have an even bigger group coming in soon," he answered angrily. Al slumped while his father clapped him on the back as they walked away trailing the enormous bunch of Weasleys.

"Don't worry, son. I'm sure we'll find them soon," he promised. Rose was hopping around with excitement, annoying her father with constant questions.

"Who'd you think will win, Dad? Who has the better brooms? Why doesn't Aunt Ginny play professionally anymore? Do you think I could?" she yammered. Hermione laughed at her husband's expression.

Finally, they got to their campsite. A chubby little muggle was standing in front of a little shack, smoking his pipe. Hermione and Harry approached him since they knew the most about muggles. But Rose struggled against her father who was holding her back since she was quite eager for a look and a chat with this muggle.

"Here ya are," he grumbled as he handed Harry the change and a map of the campsite. Walking down the road between the tents you couldn't help but become awestruck. Some tents looked like palaces made out of silk. Attachable ponds and bird fountains shot water into the air. Banners flew over campsites, declaring nationality. Young children soared on toy broomsticks and ran around shooting sparks with their parents' wands. Finally, they reached their campsite.

"Wow, we're really close," Bill wondered. "Wonder why?"

"Well, when you have two very famous parents, it isn't hard to get the best site," James bragged as he grinned to his father who glared back.

"Or maybe was because you're father booked the tickets very far in advance so that we could be guaranteed good seats," Ginny shot back as she petted her son harder than necessary.

"Can we set up the tents now? I'm starving!" Louis complained as he flopped dramatically on the ground.

"Calm down, son. You're starting to sound like your Mother," Bill chuckled and received a smack from Fleur. The men reached into their bags and each pulled out a miniature tent, which they placed on the ground. Then they each smashed it with their foot and jumped back quickly. Five comfortable tents sprang up from the ground and sizzled with magic. Each was a different color. Red, green, blue, gray, and purple. The children whooped with glee. Bill opened the flap of the blue tent to allow Louis and Dominique inside. Victorie stumbled in after them, assisted by her boyfriend, Teddy, who would be staying in Harry's tent. She had been struggling with nightmares and insomnia since the end of the school year, when she was freed from Albany's dream corruption.

Fred and Angelina ran into their red tent followed by their kids, Freddy and Roxanne. Percy and Audrey would be staying in the gray tent with their daughters, Molly and Lucy, while Ron and Hermione would share the green tent with their children, Hugo and Rose. The Potters were left with the purple tent, which made James quite upset but made Lily twirl with glee.

"I love purple!" she cried as she dashed into the tent. Each tent came with two bedrooms, a kitchen, and a small sitting area. Windows allowed sunlight to filter in and liven up the cloth house. Al quickly looked around before returning outside to join Rose.

"Can we go look for Hope and SS now?" Rose asked her Father impatiently as he lit a fire secretly with his wand. Ron sighed before he nodded. "Thank you Daddy!"

"But be careful! And stay away from strangers!" Hermione yelled after them. Al nodded at his aunt while Rose strutted ahead. He struggled to keep up with her long legs inherited by her Father. They pranced down rows of magical tents, some sprouting working chimneys, while others shot off fireworks in the shape of their favorite Quidditch players.

Soon they began to run into some of their classmates from Hogwarts. Al paused multiple times to say hello to a number of Hufflepuffs. Rose met Emmet near the water pump and they enjoyed a lengthy conversation about their Potions essay before Al cried that he could see SS. Rose said a hasty good bye and ran full tilt at her friend.

SS was sitting on foldable chairs outside a snow-white tent, sipping pumpkin juice, when suddenly he was tackled by a hug from Al. SS yelled and fell forward off his chair, spilling his drink all over the tent. SS sat up, spitting and cursing.

"What in Merlin's good name was that for?" he demanded. Rose and Al laughed uncontrollably while SS groaned as he sat up, nursing limbs that had hit the ground. Suddenly a wealthy looking witch with brown hair came storming outside the tent followed closely by a pale man.

"What are you children doing?" the woman asked, her expression slightly amused.

"Relax, dear. Am I correct to assume that it was you who tackled her from behind?" Draco asked Al who nodded and giggled a little.

"Oh you children," Astoria sighed. Her eyes fell to the orange stain on the white tent. "And you've stained the tent!"

"I'll fix, it dear," Draco said as he lit an elegant pipe with his wand.

"That won't be necessary," Astoria laughed as she drew her own wand and aimed it at the orange stain. Suddenly a ministry witch in a bath robe and dress pants walked by. She jumped when she saw Astoria's wand.

"No magic! Muggle security!" she squawked as she handed her a fine for 30 sickles. Astoria turned bright red and walked angrily back into her tent, forgetting all about the stain.

"Children, go fetch us some water. And don't dawdle!" Draco instructed as he followed his humiliated wife. Al and Rose looked curiously at SS who shrugged and lifted the pot. Together, they walked forward, Rose directing them with the map.

"Where's Hope?" Al asked SS as they passed a tent full of French witches who winked at the boys as they passed.

"I thought you said your parents were okay with her staying with you," Rose added, glaring at the witches.

"Hope told me that her mother said she couldn't come. Quite unfortunate, really. Our tent is quite spacious and these Spanish woods are very nice," SS explained as they got in line for the well.

"I was really hoping she would come. I wanted someone to talk to during the game tonight," Rose complained.

"What about us?" Al asked, offended.

"About things other than Quidditch," she sighed. SS and Al traded looks and trudged ahead to fill the water pot.

* * *

As they were walking back, Rose saw two girls from her Herbology class. They waved happily at her and she waved back at the extremely pale and brown haired Rachel Irey who was sitting next to the dark and calm Twyla Eder. They both sat in front of their blue and gold tent happily painting each other's faces pink and white in support of the Quiberon Quafflepunchers who were playing for France.

"Hey Rose," Rachel called and waved. "Who are you guys supporting?"

"The Heidelberg Harriers who are playing for Germany," Rose replied calmly. Al stared at his cousin as if seeing her in a new light.

"Seriously!" he demanded. Rose shrugged, trying to hide her smirk. Twyla laughed.

"I'm supporting the referees," SS sighed, bored. Twyla laughed harder. Al looked like he was struggling to find something kind to say despite his rage.

"I think you better stop. You're going to kill Al if you say much more," Rachel sighed as she charmed her paint to change color and shape.

"No magic outside of school," Rose said automatically. Rachel gave a dry chuckle.

"The Trace is masked by all the adults and there are no ministry wizards around. This is why we're not complete dunderheads when school starts again," Twyla explained simply as she charmed her paint as well.

"We should get the water back to your parents, SS," Al wheezed out, deciding to leave the subject of Quidditch for now. SS shrugged and Rose said good-bye to Rachel and Twyla.

* * *

The match was an amazing display of the best fliers of the 21st century. France's chaser seemed to be able to read each other's minds and Germany's keeper was a wall. Al nearly fell out of his seat, his was leaning so close. Rose spent most of the time reading the program and looking up when Al poked her. SS further annoyed the young Potter when he glanced at the field and spotted something interesting.

"The snitch is by Germany's goal posts," SS said in a bored tone as he glanced up from the figurine of the French beater he had bought.

"What!" Al yelled and began searching for the little golden ball.

"Too late. It flew away," SS sighed and returned to the angry three-inch man who was clubbing his thumb.

But the game was all over in an hour when Germany's seeker caught the snitch and they won the European Cup, 160 – 30.

* * *

After the game Rose, Al, and SS were all sitting in SS's room inside his family's tent. A large bed covered in soft blankets dominated the room. SS' clothes were sprawled all over the floor, as his family had already been at their site for a few days. SS was sitting on his bed, next to Al, while Rose sat on the floor, flipping through her textbooks for the year.

"Must you memorize our text books before school has even started?" SS groaned as he munched chocolate frogs.

"I'm not memorizing, I'm overviewing. There's a difference," she snapped and looked up at the boys. "Have you guys wrote to Professor Venus or Professor Higglebottom this summer?" The mood became somber at once.

"No. Nothing happened," SS replied quickly.

"You're lying," Al responded. SS bit his lip and looked away.

"I told them we were coming here. Professor Higglebottom seems to thinks it's wise if we stay together," Rose continued as if she hadn't heard them.

"Why are you lying?" Al demanded.

"Fine. Something did happen but I didn't write to them," SS groaned and picked at an empty candy box.

"Why wouldn't you write to them? Or at least to us?" Al wondered.

"Because it wasn't that big of a deal!" SS protested.

"What happened?" Rose demanded as she crawled onto the bed.

"I had this one dream the day before you guys came. All I remember is seeing purple. And I was holding my wand when I woke up," SS explained, looking down. "But I haven't had them since!"

"You were holding your wand. Did you do anything?" Rose asked.

"No."

"Okay. We need to be careful. Dream corruption is a specialty of Albany's," Rose said, looking out a fake window on the fabric wall. It held the view of SS's window back in England.

"We know," Al sighed and leaned back against the puffy pillows. "I hope Hope is okay. I wonder if she's had a good summer."

Suddenly shouts filled the space outside of SS's room. All three children sat up and approached the fabric door. It suddenly flew open as a ruffled eagle owl soared through. Draco and Astoria where running after it. The owl landed on SS's bed and dropped a letter.

"SS, do you know who sent that owl?" Draco demanded.

"No," he replied and grabbed the envelope, "but let's find out." He opened the letter and began to read very slowly. After a minute, Rose groaned and snatched it out of his hand.

"Oh, just let me read it!" she cried out and began to read, her eyes moving so fast they looked like golden blurs. As her eyes got further down the page her face grew paler.

"What? What's wrong?" Al demanded. Rose looked up, eyes wide with concern.

"Hope. She's not coming back to Hogwarts," Rose told them urgently.


	2. Asphodel Returns

Chapter Two: Asphodel Returns

"You're weak. Alone. Easy prey for me and my wolf," a voice hissed. Purple smoke curled into shapes before Hope's eyes. Rose, sobbing as she bled onto a white marble floor. Al, struggling to fight a seventh year wizard. SS, being scorched by sparks and spells. A voice laughed. "Come to me, little snake, and I will assure you the safety of all you love. I promise."

"No!" Hope screamed and jerked awake. Moonlight fell on the wooden floor of her bedroom. All her blankets were thrown around the room and Hope was holding her wand tightly in her fist. She touched her face and felt salty tears. She put her hand on her heart to still the beating and touched crimson blood. A thin cut was on her chest, dripping tiny beads of blood onto her nightgown.

Hope stood up and went to the bathroom. The cut wasn't deep, just a scratch. She applied a healing paste and splashed some cold water on her face. Then she returned to her room. As she glanced out her window, she saw a pale figure run across the field. But when she blinked, it was gone.

Shivering with nerves, Hope climbed into her bed. But she didn't go back to sleep. She stared at the tan walls of her room for hours, waiting for the sun to rise.

* * *

In the morning, Valentina watched her daughter closely. The bags under her eyes had grown darker, her movements slower. Over the course of the last couple of weeks she had watched Hope fall into a sluggish state of existing. And Valentina had a theory of what was happening to her daughter.

"Hope," she began as Hope munched on a piece of toast, "I've come to a decision."

"About?" Hope prompted, not really paying attention.

"About you. And Hogwarts," her mother said and Hope jumped as if shocked.

"What about Hogwarts?" she demanded, her attention completely captured.

"I don't think you will be returning.

"Why?"

"You are clearly very ill and I think I know why," Valentina said. Hope gulped, suddenly fearful.

"What do you mean? I'm fine," she protested.

"You are clearly traumatized by the events of last year, specifically the fight in the tower. I think you are clearly a victim of PTSD and I will not allow you to return to Hogwarts when you look like Death is knocking on your door."

"But Hogwarts is my second home. I have to go back!" Fear flooded her veins at the thought of not being able to go to the place she loved most.

"You were attacked once and had to rescue your friend from crazy seventh years! It is completely absurd that you would want to return and I will not allow you to go back to that death trap they call a school!" Valentina yelled, finally letting all her worries and fears out.

"You're just looking for an excuse to keep me away from Hogwarts! You don't really care about me! You just want to keep me away from school!" Hope yelled back.

"That's not true!" Valentina protested. "I'm only doing what's best for you!"

"You can't do this! You can't stop me!" Hope yells back, fury flooding her veins.

"Yes I can! I am your mother and you will do as I say!" Valentina screamed.

"What if I don't?" Hope hissed, suddenly deadly still. She looked mad, her black hair un-brushed, her skin paler than normal, the bags under her eyes extremely pronounced, her dark eyes wide with rage. Valentina pushed her chair back, trying to distance herself from the crazy girl across the table who had replaced her daughter.

"Then I will make you stay here. I know much more magic than you and I can do it legally. You will do as I say or I will be forced to do something," Valentina replied quietly and walked to the front door. She grabbed her bag and looked at her daughter. "I'm going to town. Stay here. I've already hidden the Floo powder."

Valentina slammed the door behind her and Hope heard the pop of her disapparation. She closed her eyes in anger and a flash of purple crossed her lids. Hope jumped and the anger drained out of her, replaced with fear.

What did her dreams mean? She feared even closing her eyes, terrified she would hear the silky voice of Albany and see flashes of purple. Terrified that she would wake up and see her mother dead by her hand, a result of dream corruption.

Hope gulped and made a decision. Professor Venus and Professor Higglebottom had told her to write them if anything happened over the summer. And something was happening. She could feel it.

Hope sat at her desk and wrote two letters. One to the professors and one to her friends. They were at the European Quidditch Cup and would hopefully get the letter together. It was her most desperate move but she hoped that her friends could talk sense into her mother and help her figure out her dreams.

As Hope walked back into the kitchen she heard the front door creek open. Hope became very still and wished she hadn't left her wand back in her room because some feeling deep inside her told her that this was not her mother returned from her errands early.

The floor squeaked as the intruder crept closer. Hops silently stood up and backed up towards the window. If all else failed, she'd simply jump out and run. Run faster than she'd ever run before.

A tall lean figure walked into the kitchen. She had pale glowing skin and pale blue eyes framed by long lashes. Her robes were dark purple and atop her white blond hair sat a pair of Artic wolf ears. Her long wand was held out in front of her and her eyes were focused on Hope. Asphodel Valle. The most faithful of Albany's followers.

"Ah, and what have we here?" she whispered, a terrifying smile stretching across her lips. "The little snake all alone with no one to protect her." Hope tried to stand up tall but fear was coursing through her veins. Asphodel stepped closer. "All alone, forgotten, her little friends not close enough to save her."

"I don't need them to fight you!" Hope yelled, hoping to cover up her fear. Asphodel cackled.

"That is where you are wrong, little snake," she laughed and raised her wand.

* * *

Valentina walked briskly down the cobblestone streets of Diagon Alley, Hope's Hogwarts list in hand. As she dug through shelves of books, she did her best to blink back her tears. Her daughter was suffering and she didn't know why. There was a time when Hope would share everything with Valentina, from the big bug she had smashed to an interesting rock she had found in the garden.

But those days were gone. Hope was pulling away, only trusting a select group of people. She was so much like her father and that worried Valentina immensely. If something were to happen to her…

Just as Valentina slipped _The Standard Book of Spells, Grade Two_ into her bag she felt something vibrate against her leg. She reached into her pocket and pulled out her thin white wand. It was buzzing and glowing a greenish color. Valentina gasped and clutched her wand tightly. This could only mean one thing. Hope was in trouble. Valentina diapparated on the spot, leaving her purchases behind.

* * *

"Are you going to kill me?" Hope demanded. Her back was toward the window and her fingers were fumbling for the latch behind her back.

"How I would love to kill you, but Albany requires you alive," Asphodel drawled and twirled her wand around. Hope's fingers found the latch.

"Touching. But I don't think I'll stick around," Hope replied and flipped the latch. Asphodel's brows knit together in anger.

"COLLOPORTUS!" she said and pointed her wand at the window Hope was standing against. It locked instantly and she couldn't get it open. "I think you will. I wonder if you remember this." Asphodel pulled out a small broken black stone from her pocket.

"The Resurrection Stone," Hope whispered and began moving to the next window. But Asphodel just waved her wand they all locked with a click. Even the door was locked. Hope was trapped.

"Yes. We still have it," Asphodel laughed and walked towards the young trapped girl. "And we intend to use it."

"I won't let you!" Hope yelled and acted on instinct. She ran forward and barreled into the tall blond. Asphodel cried out in surprise and Hope yanked the stone out of her hand. Next, she tried to grab her wand but Asphodel was prepared for that.

"EVERTE STATUM!" she yelled and Hope flew back, across the room, and hit the wall. Pain filled her limbs and she could feel blood dampening her hair. "INCARCEROUS!" Thick ropes pined Hope's arms to her sides and stopped her from moving. She groaned and rolled over like a dying fish. "Pathetic."

"You won't get away with this," Hope hissed. Asphodel leaned closer to her and pulled the stone out of her hand, slipping it back into her pocket.

"And who's going to stop me?" she wondered and smirked.

"STUPEFY!" a voice cried out and a beam of red light hit Asphodel. She fell to the ground next to Hope with a dull thud, her eyes closed. Valentina rushed into the kitchen and held her wand out. "DIFFINDO!" The ropes broke apart and fell off Hope. She sat up in wonderment.

"Mom?" she gasped. Valentina wrapped her arms around her daughter in a bone-crushing hug.

"Hope, are you okay?" she demanded.

"Yeah," Hope gasped. She pulled out of the hug and looked into her mother's deep blue eyes. "Thanks. How'd you know…?"

"The house has enchantments on it. My wand buzzes and glows when an intruder steps on the grounds," Valentina explained. "Why did she attack you? Who is she?"

"Uh…," Hope started. If she told her mother the truth, she may never let her go back to Hogwarts. But didn't she deserve the truth? Or was ignorance bliss? "I don't know."

"You're lying, Hope," Valentina responded, jaw clenching with anger. "What aren't you telling me?"

"Nothing!" she protested.

"Why won't you tell me the truth?" Valentina yelled, tears filling her eyes. "Why don't you trust me anymore?"

"I do!" Hope yelled back, wishing her mother could understand. She was doing this right. This way her mother wouldn't worry about her as much.

"Hope, please, don't shut me out! I don't want you to end up like your father!" Valentina cried, head in hands. Hope paused, taking this information in. She always assumed her father was a good man, not someone to be ashamed of. Her mother said she was like him all the time.

"What happened to my father? What did he do?" Hope asked slowly, hoping her mother would take it back. Valentina looked up quickly, realizing what she had said.

"Nothing, nothing, he didn't do anything," she rambled and looked out the window.

"You're lying," Hope gasped, hurt, "to _me_!"

" _You're_ lying to me," Valentina bit back. Anger flared in Hope's chest and she stared at the floor. So this was how it was going to be. Trading secrets for secrets.

"Her name is Asphodel," Hope began, staring at her attacker's unconscious body. "She was the Head Girl of Ravenclaw last year. She was the most faithful servant of Albany."

"The ghost who was corrupting the seventh years' dreams?" Valentina asked. Hope nodded. "But why did she attack you? What does she want?

"She wants to trade my life for Albany's with the Resurrection Stone," Hope explained cringing slightly. Her mother was going to flip.

"There's no such thing as a Resurrection Stone," Valentina said angrily, clearly thinking her daughter was lying again.

"But there is. Harry Potter got it from Dumbledore. He left it in the Forbidden Forest and Albany's followers found it. They were going to use it to bring Albany back to life by trading Rose's life for hers," Hope protested.

"But it didn't work. Because you and your friends got there before they could free the ghost," Valentina continued. Swallowing hard, Hope nodded.

"Right. But I think Asphodel is trying to find us to trade our life for hers."

"But why you…?" Valentina drifted off as if she had just realized something.

"You said something about my father. That you didn't want me to end up like him. Why?" Hope demanded, not noticing her mother's vacant stare of realization. Valentina snapped back and frowned slightly, stretching her wrinkles.

"He, well, he made some bad decisions," she began.

"Like what? You always say I'm just like him," Hope cut in.

"You are," Valentina assured her.

"So what happened to him?"

"He shut people out. He lost sight of what was important," Valentina whispered, tears falling from her blue eyes. "He thought he was right. He did some bad things, Hope. I don't want you to follow in his footsteps."

"I don't understand."

"He…was a Death Eater. He evaded capture, and then tried to fight the ministry. He was killed," Valentina sobbed.

"What?" Hope gasped, fear and denial flooding her veins. "No, you're lying."

"It's the truth. He was killed because he didn't know when to stop. But I hope you will be different. I hope something stops you from being like him."

"I…I," Hope stuttered.

"I'm so sorry I didn't tell you. I was trying to protect you!" Valentina insisted. Hope looked around, trying to make sense of her whirling thoughts. Was ignorance really bliss? Wasn't she doing the same thing to her mother had done to her by denying the return of Albany?

"I understand," Hope finally answered. Relief flooded Valentina's face and the two embraced.

The floor suddenly creaked and both mother and daughter turned to see Asphodel jump off the ground, angrier than ever.

"Hope," Valentina whispered. "Run."

"How touching. Mummy wants to save her little waif," Asphodel cackled, wand raised high. "But you're forgetting that you're both trapped."

"Not for long," Valentina murmured and grabbed her daughter's arm. Then, spinning on the spot, she disapparated.


	3. A Sleepover

Chapter Three: A Sleepover

"Where are we?" Valentina gasped. Hope looked around wildly at the place they had just landed. They were standing in a green lawn that was filled with tall trees. A rustic house stood in front of them with a gravel path leading to the brown door.

"I was going to ask you the same question. Aren't you the one who apparated us?" Hope exclaimed, struggling to keep her breakfast down. Looks like apparating wasn't that much fun after all.

"Something pulled us here. I was trying to take us to our safe house," Valentina explained.

"Safe house?" Hope wondered.

"Just for emergencies," her mother snapped then grabbed her daughter's arm. "Come on. We're leaving."

"I don't think we should," Hope said suddenly and yanked her arm away.

"Hope, we don't know where we are. We have to go," Valentina replied and reached for her daughter who jumped back.

"I think…I think _I_ pulled us here," Hope gasped and walked towards the door.

"That's ridiculous," her mother snapped. Hope continued forward. "Hope! Get back here!" She stepped onto the front step and stared at the knocker. "As your mother I am ordering you to come back!"

"I think…I think this is one of my friends' houses," Hope murmured, as if talking to herself. Valentina gave up calling her daughter and ran forward. As she did, a bright blue light began to glow in the yard. Valentina screamed and grabbed her daughter, pulling her behind a bush. "Hey!"

"Be quiet," her mother hissed and stared through the leaves. Four people suddenly appeared the blue light vanished. Hope leaned forward to get a better look.

A woman with bushy brown hair and familiar eyes vanished a hole-filled boot with her wand. A tall, freckled, red haired man picked up the little red haired boy and swung him over his shoulders while heading towards the door. But the fourth family member, a girl with bushy red hair, stood completely still with her back towards Hope.

"Hon, what's wrong?" the woman asked the girl. She shook her head as if she was shaking a thought out and turned towards the door. As she did the morning sun touched her face and Hope realized who she was.

"Rose!" Hope yelled to her best friend as she stood up. Rose jumped and turned around, startled.

"Hope?" Rose asked, confused. Hope ran forward and tackled her with a bear hug. "What are you doing here?"

"I need to tell you something. Can we come in?" Hope told her as she broke away.

"We?" Hermione asked, stepping forward. Valentina slowly stood up from behind the bushes. Hermione's eyebrows rose. "Valentina."

"Hello Mrs. Weasley," Valentina said as she walked forward and placed her hands on her daughter's shoulders.

"Well I guess you better come in," Hermione sighed and gestured to the door, "and tell us what you two are doing in our bushes."

* * *

"Are you sure?" Rose demanded as her and Hope sat on her bed with mugs of tea. Hope nodded miserably.

"They still have the stone and Asphodel was going to kidnap me. I would have been dead if it wasn't for my mother," Hope explained and sipped her tea miserably. "She kept calling me 'little snake.'"

"And you've been having dreams?" Rose asked, writing something down in a notebook.

"Yeah. But I haven't done anything," Hope assured her.

"SS said he'd been having dreams too," Rose mumbled, "but that they stopped when we arrived."

"Do you think Albany is trying to corrupt us?" Hope wondered.

"I fear so. Did you tell your mother about Albany returning? I'm sure she was freaked out by Asphodel."

"No. But I told her who Asphodel was, in exchange for some answers."

"Answers about what?" Rose asked and looked up from her notebook.

"My father."

"Really?" Hope nodded, sadly. "Did she tell you who he is?"

"He was a Death Eater. And he's dead," Hope said bluntly, although tears were forming in her eyes.

"Oh, Hope, I'm so sorry," Rose told her, taking her best friend's hand.

"She said that she doesn't want me to end up like him but that I'm exactly like him. How do I not become who he was if I'm just like him?"

"Well, you have some of your mother in you. You're not just your father."

"Maybe. I always thought that being like him was something to be proud of. That's how my mother made it seem," Hope sighed and reached down the front of the floral dress Rose had lent her.

She pulled out two necklaces. One, a silver chain with a silver snake charm with emeralds down his back. The other, a white piece of wood with a green stain on it hanging from a worn cord. The first she had bought for herself; it matched the ones she had given her friends.

The second was a piece of her father's wand, given to her from her mother. Until today Hope had always been proud to wear it around her neck. But now it was almost as if she was carrying a past, a mistake. A reminder not to be like her father despite her genetics.

Rose watched her friend's silence and frowned. She hated that she couldn't do anything to help. And she was so worried about her. If something happened, if Hope went too far in her quest for answers…

"Did she tell you his name?" Rose asked, hoping to learn what Hope was thinking.

"No. Do you think I should find out?" Hope responded and looked up, slipping her necklaces back under her clothes.

"Well, I don't know," Rose sighed.

"Isn't knowledge power?" Hope wondered.

"Isn't ignorance bliss?" Rose replied.

"Maybe…" Hope sighed and looked out Rose's window, searching the flowers for answers.

"I know you, Hope. If you found out his name you would find out everything about him."

"Is that a bad thing? I mean, he was my father."

"Why didn't your mother tell you all this before?"

"She was trying to protect me. That's all she's ever done. Protect me," Hope admitted, looking into Rose's golden brown eyes.

"And aren't we doing the same thing to our parents? By not telling them everything about Albany, aren't we trying to protect them?"

"Do you think I'll ever find out who he was?"

"Yes. But I don't think your mother, or you, are ready for that. Not today," Rose said. Hope nodded in agreement.

"Thanks."

"Always."

Rose's bedroom door suddenly swung open and Hermione and Valentina entered.

"Valentina has told me all she can about the attack but we both agree that there are some pieces missing," Hermione told the girls and glared at her daughter. "What aren't you telling us?"

"We only know what you know," Rose lied and Hope nodded. Hermione's glare hardened a degree, as if she didn't believe her daughter's lie.

"Hermione, is it really vital to question them?" Valentina interrupted. "I think me and Hope will go home now. I'll cast stronger charms to ensure this never happens again."

"Don't be ridiculous. The Hogwarts Express leaves tomorrow. You should stay," Hermione said.

"But I left all of Hope's Hogwarts things in Flourish and Blotts when I heard she was in trouble. They're probably stolen," Valentina insisted.

"I'll owl the owner, we're old friends. And Ron can go with you to pick up your things from your house," Hermione said. Valentina started to protest but Hermione led her back into the kitchen. "Hope, you should come too." Hope looked at Rose.

"Go. I'm going to owl the boys about what happened. I don't think it can wait till tomorrow," Rose told her and nodded towards the door. Hope smiled and followed her mother.

* * *

The house was a mess. Furniture was blasted apart and glass littered the floor. Rugs were dancing on the ceiling and the knives tried to kill them. Luckily Ron had a year's worth of Auror training under his belt and his training combined with Valentina's knowledge was enough to set the house right.

Hope climbed the stairs and entered her room. Everything was torn apart and all her books on magic were gone. Fear suddenly sparked in her heart. What if Asphodel had found her wand? Hope ran over to her lamp that lay on the floor, its bulb broken, and reached up into the lampshade. She felt around until she found the thin piece of wood clicked onto the back of it. Hope breathe out a sigh of relief.

"Hope, why was your wand there?" Valentina asked her daughter as she watched from the door way. "Were you expecting to be attacked or stolen from?"

"No!" Hope said instantly, sort of telling the truth. She never expected _she_ would be attacked. She had been hiding her wand so that her sleeping self wouldn't find it. But she always did. "I was afraid that you might take it, so I couldn't go back to Hogwarts."

"Oh, Hope, I would never take your wand," Valentina said and reached for her daughter. Hope stepped back.

"Even if you thought it was best for me?" she asked.

"If it was what you needed, then yes. But I don't see how that wand is causing you harm," Valentina answered, her arms by her side. Hope swallowed, hard. "You should pack everything you need for school. I'll fix anything broken."

"Thanks," Hope said, looking away guiltily. Lying to her mother had always been an impossible task. Ron Weasley suddenly came through the door.

"Ready to go? Rosie's probably getting anxious. She gets that from her mum," Ron laughed and slammed Hope's trunk shut. Hope watched as her mother's walls went up.

"Of course," she nodded and walked out of the room. Ron stared after her, confused, then glanced at Hope.

"You coming?" he asked. Hope nodded, grabbed a bag of spare items, and followed her mother to the fireplace that would take her back to Rose's.


	4. The Return to Hogwarts

Chapter Four: The Return to Hogwarts

"Come, little snake. Come and die," the silky voice cackled. Hope ran away, tearing through trees and bushes, but the voice wouldn't stop speaking. "All your friends fear you. You'll never be accepted, so long as you're a snake."

"Shut up!" Hope yelled and drew her wand. The tip glowed an evil green and shot out silver sparks.

"Don't you know that you can't defeat me? I'm in your _mind_ , Hope," the voice laughed and the darkness began to press in on Hope. She kept shooting silver sparks at nothing But then, a glowing bronze light appeared on the edge of her sight.

"Hope!" Rose's voice called out. Hope felt a hand touch her shoulder. "Hope, stop. Come with me." She turned and saw Rose's golden eyes.

"Huh?" Hope mumbled. The darkness closed in and Hope fell to the ground. Her dark eyes suddenly flashed open. She was standing over her friend, wanted pointed at her chest. "Rose?"

"Hope, what are you doing?" Rose whisper-yelled. She sat up on her bed and Hope stepped back. She looked at the wand in her hand and felt great shame.

"I…I don't know. I was having a nightmare. I'm sorry," Hope answered, shaking her head in confusion

"I know. I meant, why do you have your wand pointed at me?" Rose demanded.

"I... I heard Albany. She was telling me...things," Hope admitted.

"What sort of things?" Rose asked as she moved next to her friend.

"I don't know," Hope lied. "But the dream seemed weaker than before." Rose frowned but didn't press.

"Go back to bed. We have to leave early in the morning," Rose instructed her. Hope nodded and laid back down on the cot on the floor. Rose sighed and laid back down as well, the gears in her brain turning. Neither of them slept for the rest of the night but both pretended that they had.

* * *

"Are you sure she's okay?" Al asked Rose as they sat in their compartment on the Hogwarts Express, watching SS and Hope buy sweets from the trolley witch.

"I think so. I think she's a little on edge after yesterday, but then again, so am I. We just need to give her space," Rose whispered back.

"And be there for her," Al added. Hope looked back at them, eyeing them, as if she knew what they were talking about. And she didn't like it. SS came back into their compartment, hands full and pockets lighter.

"Look, we got cauldron cakes! My mum never makes these anymore!" SS cried in triumph. Al grinned and Rose shook her head. Hope leaned on the doorway and sucked a sugar quill, daring her friends to say anything. Her eyes stared into Al's soul and he felt sweat drip off his palms.

"We weren't doing anything wrong," Al said nervously. Hope raised an eyebrow. "We were just talking." The other eyebrow rose. "Just talking, talking 'bout stuff and things." Silence.

"What's going on?" SS mumbled through a mouth full of cake.

"Nothing!" Al declared, eyes glancing at Rose, who was rolling her eyes, and Hope, who was just staring and sucking on her sugar quill. "Nothing at all!" Hope walked in the compartment and sat next to SS, across from Al, still not saying anything. "Stop looking at me like that! We're just worried about you!" Hope pulled the sugar quill out of her mouth. Her lips were blue.

"Worried about me? Or about what I'll do?" Hope asked, voice a deadly calm. Rose rolled her eyes while Al's breathing got wheezy.

"About you!" Rose declared. "We're all a little stressed from tomorrow but we'll be fine."

"Will we?" Al whispered, voicing his fears for the first time. "I had nightmares about that night all summer. I would wake up screaming. James teased me constantly."

"Did you have any while we were at the European Cup?" Rose asked. Al shook his head. "Exactly. My theory is that Albany cannot send us dreams or nightmares while we're together. We're more powerful that way. That's how I know we'll be fine."

"Good. Because the constant threat of attacks would really put a damper on our second year," SS said and munched on another cake.

"Yes, SS, that is our biggest concern. That our second year gets _dampened_ ," Hope sighed sarcastically. Al chuckled and Rose laughed. Even SS smiled. The rest of the ride was filled with talk of the past and plans for the future with much laughter added into the mix.

* * *

The first years nervously congregated in the front of the Great Hall, all murmuring nervously. Heng Kim and Tristan Luff, two second year Gryffindors, laughed and made fun of them. SS and his one Gryffindor friend, Ferna Abell, rolled their eyes and cheered when new Gryffindors joined the table. A professor walked forward, placed the sorting hat on its stool and walked away. Everyone leaned forward.

"You expect a song do ya?

A jolly good ole tale,

Well I got one to sing aloud,

About a man so very pale.

His name? Well, it can't be said,

by any but the bravest of heart

for a weaker man will quake and wail

by memories making them fall apart.

Teaching lessons like might is right

And purebloods hold the true power

Even though he was a hypocrite

With followers that needed a shower.

He did hold true to his heritage

And taught those that followed him

How terrible those Slytherins could turn

When sly and cunning is made so grim.

However, they are nothing to fear

When used right they can bring cheer

One boy ended this plight

Harry Potter is the lad

Bringing light into the fight

Drawing strength from things so sad.

He showed the power of Gryffindor

Brave was he, to face his fear

Strong to last so long

And bold holding up to that jeer

However Harry couldn't have won

Without the wit of Ravenclaw

or those sturdy Hufflepuff

We may have fallen into evil's maw.

"There is no shame in any house

Nor in being a regular muggle

Everyone plays their part

In each and every struggle.

Everyone applauded and James began to boast loudly about his father. Al, bright red with embarrassment, put his head in his hands. His fellow Hufflepuffs patted his back in sympathy. Apparently everyone was a Harry Potter fan. Why?

The Slytherin's glared at the hat who had just dissed their house and Hope played with a fork. Everyone was a critic.

The first were called and the sorting began. Rose watched nervously as her cousin, Lucy, Uncle Percy's daughter, approached the stool. She was the last to be sorted, just like her. The hat sat on her red head, thought a moment, then yelled, "GRYFFINDOR!" Rose sighed, but she had expected that. Emmet Newland, a fellow Ravenclaw with sand blond hair and a tiny nose, looked over sympathetically and offered a mushed pumpkin pasty he had smuggled from the train.

Al grinned as he was reunited with his Hufflepuff friends, Leon and Emrys, who were eager to hear about his summer. And Hope laughed and sat alongside Rachel and Twyla, her two Slytherian besties.

Headmistress Caroban stood to give her welcoming speech. "Welcome students. I am sure you are all eager to begin another year of wonderful learning. To start the evening, I would like to start with a few announcements..."

Hope tuned out the Headmistress's speech and began to look at her fellow Slytherins. That's when she began to notice that their number was lower than last year. The two boys who had dueled on the second day of her first year of Hogwarts were missing even though they had only been six years. A fifth year who had been stressing about his owls so much he needed a calming draught was gone, as well as a girl and boy from her year, and many more whose names Hope didn't know. She turned to Twyla and Rachel.

"Did you guys notice how many students are missing?" she whispered to her friends. Twyla's looked up and down her table but Rachel rolled her eyes.

"Maybe their parents don't like Hogwarts anymore," Rachel suggested.

"Yeah, but I can tell that at least ten students are missing and that's just the ones I remember from last year. That's a lot more than the normal drop outs," Twyla contradicted. The new Head Girl gave the three second years a glare and shushed them.

"It doesn't matter," Rachel said, ending their conversation. Hope frowned but let the matter drop. Then she tuned back into the closing statements from the Headmistress.

"I hope we will all have another magical year at Hogwarts. Now it is time to enjoy the feast. Thank you," Professor Caroban finished her speech and sat back down.

Food appeared on all the golden plates, filling the long house tables. Some students cheered and immediately grabbed their favorite items. Others began to chat with friends while munching on bit sized treats on teetering towers.

Luff and Kim were delighting their crowd with magical pranks on the poor Slytherins. SS and Ferna rolled their eyes and laughed when a girl in green charmed the bullies' hair pink from across the room in retaliation.

"How was your summer?" Ferna asked in her familiar bubbly voice.

"Alright. I went to the European Cup in Spain," SS replied and smeared butter on his green beans.

"Cool. Are you going to try out for Quidditch?" she inquired.

"That dolt, playing for Gryffindor!" Luff yelled, his floppy hair dangling into his eyes. He had overheard Ferna and SS's conversation.

"Thanks Ferna, I haven't had this good a laugh all summer!" Kim, an Asian wizard added. SS growled and Ferna turned red.

"I bet you that he'll get on the house team and you two will be stuck watching from the stands! He's a better flyer than the two of you combined! Remember our flying lessons?" she shouted back. The other Gryffindor's nearby quieted to listen to the fight.

"He charmed his broom just like he hexed the Sorting Hat!" Kim replied angrily.

"That accusation is getting rather old," SS sighed and popped a berry tart into his mouth.

"So, Ferna, you said you bet that he'll get on the house team and we won't?" Luff inquired leaning forward eagerly. Ferna nodded briskly. "If you're so confident then what are you betting?"

"What do you want?" she asked him, disgusted.

"Ferna…," SS said softly in warning. Ferna was a sweet but very passionate girl. She had a tendency to get in over her head.

"If he doesn't get on the team then you'll go on a date with me," Luff offered. Ferna rolled her eyes.

"But if I win then you agree to leave me and SS alone for the rest of the year. And you have to admit that SS's better than you," Ferna declared. Luff narrowed his eyes.

"Fine."

"Fine."

"What have you gotten me into?" SS asked his copper haired friend. She just smiled and cut a piece of cake on her plate. But SS had lost his appetite.

* * *

"Are you sure you're okay?" Emmet asked Rose again. She gave a glare with her golden eyes and he shut up.

"Rose," a girl from their year named Mackenzie Shirk called, "can you tell us what happened in that tower last year? What happened to Albany?"

"Could you be more specific?" Rose asked the blond, trying to dodge the question.

"I heard a rumor that Asphodel Valle tried to kill you," Mackenzie said, face blank. Rose raised an eyebrow. "Is it true?"

"Listening to rumors is like getting your information for a research paper from Rita Skeeter," Rose replied and took a swig of pumpkin juice from her cup.

"You're not answering my question. Did Asphodel try to kill you?" Mackenzie demanded.

"Yes. She did," Rose answered simply. Emmet touched her arm in comfort. He had known about this and he knew how it hurt her. The old Head Girl had pretended to be Rose's friends, showed kindness and friendship, only to betray her in the end.

"Why you?" Mackenzie continued.

"Why do you ask? Jealous?" Rose said, smirking slightly. Mackenzie just smiled.

"Do you ever give a straight answer?"

"I believe that answers are never straight. They make you think as much as the question itself."

"So you don't know if Asphodel will attack you again?" Mackenzie demanded. Rose remembered the tale Hope had told her, how Asphodel had entered her home and nearly killed her. Asphodel was still out there. And she was out for her or her friends' blood.

"No, Mackenzie, I don't know," Rose lied and turned away.

* * *

"Hey, Al, tell us about your summer," Leon called to his friend. All the Hufflepuffs eagerly leaned in. Al shrugged.

"I went to the European Cup," Al told his admirers.

"Lucky," a third year moaned.

"Weren't the Spanish woods beautiful," another said.

"Is everything going to be okay this year?" a first year asked Al. Everyone grew quiet and looked at the black haired boy. They all knew about the attacks. And fear was settling into their bones.

"Of course. Why wouldn't it be?" Al laughed nervously to the timid first year. The other students in yellow and black nodded and smiled and went back to their dinner. But Al had lost his appetite. He had lied. He didn't know if things were going to be okay. He just knew that Albany and Asphodel were still out there. And they would stop at nothing for revenge. Luckily, no one noticed that Al was so deeply lost in his thoughts.

* * *

Rose tossed and turned. She couldn't seem to get comfortable. She pulled her quilt over her shivering shoulders then tossed it off as sweat beads broke out on her skin. Sighing, she got out of bed and walked down the stairs to the common room. As she pushed the heavy secret door open she heard a swish of a curtain. Cautious, Rose pulled out her wand. But it was nothing more than a stray breeze.

Berating herself for her foolishness, Rose picked a book randomly off the shelf and sat in one of the poufy chairs in front of the fire place and began to read. But something still felt off, almost as if she were being watched. Rose looked up and saw the marble statue of Rowena Ravenclaw glowing in the moonlight. Rose slid off her chair and walked closer. The statue was in a small alcove between two windows and was five feet tall, not including the pedestal.

Rose stepped up and stared at the founder's face. She had frizzy curly hair that was held back by her diadem and a large mouth that looked like the one Rose saw every day in the mirror. Albany's words came back to her as she examined the wise face. _"You are the Daughter of Wisdom. The Descendent of Rowena Ravenclaw! Through your Mother's veins runs the ancient blood of Ravenclaw!"_

But Rowena had only one daughter, Helene, and she died before she could have children. The Ravenclaw blood line had ended there. It wasn't possible.

"Lonely? Or trouble sleeping?" a soft voice asked. Rose spun around, nearly falling off Rowena's pedestal, her wand pointed towards the speaker. But it turned out to be Helene, the Gray Lady, ghost of Ravenclaw.

"I…I couldn't sleep," Rose confessed and stepped down, walking slowly to the chair that Helene was floating over.

"I never could either when I was your age. So much in this world muddles the mind," Helene mused and flicked her floating transparent hair off her shoulder.

"What are you doing here? I thought you hated Ravenclaw tower?" Rose wondered.

"How dare you?" Helene huffed and began to float away.

"Oh, I wasn't trying to offend you," Rose groaned and rolled her eyes. "I was just curious."

"Well I don't owe you an explanation!" Helene declared.

"Fine!" Rose cried out and fell back into a chair. As she did, she noticed Rowena's statue again. "Helene, did you have any children?"

"No. Spoiled, entitled brats. I don't know why anyone would want any!" the ghost snapped.

"Did you have any siblings?" Rose asked.

"Why do you care?" Helene demanded.

"You didn't answer my question," Rose observed. Helene shifted in the air nervously.

"So what?"

"You're not giving me an answer. Did you have any siblings?"

"I really don't see how it's any of your business!" The Gray Lady began to float away.

"Wait!" She paused. Rose sighed. "Last year Albany made an appearance when she attacked me. She said that I was Rowena's descendant. I'm just trying to figure out if she's right."

"Harriet was a Squib," Helene whispered so softly that Rose almost didn't hear her. "My mother sent her to live with her muggle father. I never knew what happened to her."

"Harriet was your sister, Rowena's daughter?" Rose inquired as she sat up straighter.

"Yes. I don't know if she had children. But if you want to find out if she's your ancestor then you should be looking at muggle records," Helene advised. "Her father's surname, the one she took, was York." Then Helene floated through a wall and was gone. Rose bit her lip as she began to think. How on earth was she supposed to get her hand on muggle records?


	5. The Professors

Chapter Five: The Professors

"What are you writing?" Emmet asked Rose at breakfast the next day. "Classes haven't even started yet."

"A letter to my mother," Rose answered as she rolled up the piece of parchment.

"Why?" Emmet wondered. Rose just shrugged her shoulders and left the Great Hall, heading towards the Owlery. But SS followed her.

"Hey!" he called after her as he ran down the hall to catch up with the frizzy red head. Rose turned back around and refrained from rolling her eyes. The last thing she needed was a nosy Gryffindor following her.

"What do want, SS?" she sighed. He fell into step with her.

"I was just wondering why you left breakfast so early. Emmet getting too clingy?" SS teased her as he nudged her shoulder.

"I just need to do something before class, that's all," Rose answered him, turning right and running up a flight of stairs, her long legs helping her move quickly. But SS was athletic and had limitless energy so he could keep up easily.

"What?" SS pestered her as she climbed yet another flight of stairs.

"I'm just working on an extra project," Rose snapped. SS flinched at her voice and looked down.

"Sorry," he mumbled. Rose rolled her eyes at the guilt settling in her stomach. She shouldn't have yelled at him.

"It's fine. I just don't like being bugged when I'm working on something," Rose told him, the apology obvious in her tone. "Why don't you start heading to the astronomy tower. Class starts in ten minutes."

"Don't remind me!" SS groaned as he dashed back down the stairs. "See ya later!" Rose just shook her head and ran the rest of the way to the Owlery. She didn't have one of her own because she preferred cats, like her mother.

The owls all hooted as Rose shoved open the door. She then went down the rows and selected a speedy school owl to deliver her letter. She opened to proof read it one last time.

 _Dear Mum,_

 _I'm doing an extra project for school about my ancestry for Professor Flitwick. I was wondering if you had anything that would help me track the Granger side of my family, since I already know so much about the Weasley side._

 _I promise to write you again soon. Tell Hugo to stop tormenting the neighbor's dog. Tell Dad not send me any love potions this year or other stupid joke things. And please send me any new books you think I would like._

 _Love,_

 _Rose_

"Perfect," Rose told herself. It got all her information across in a nonsuspicious manner. Hopefully her mother would have some information that she could use. So, Rose tied the letter to the owl's leg and went to her first class of her first day of her second year.

* * *

"Welcome, class, to another year of Charms," Professor Venus announced to the sleepy second year Hufflepuffs. Al waved from his seat in the middle of the sea of desks. Professor Venus just smiled. "Today, we will be reviewing all the charms we learned last year. All of them are listed on the board. Please try to do it from memory before you get out your notes. Thank you!"

Al wrote down the list of charms on the blackboard and sighed. Twenty total. And he only remembered half of them. As he struggled to recall the incantation for a fire summoning charm, Professor Venus slowly made her way towards his desk. She smiled and jogged the memory of students as she walked towards the black haired Potter.

"Hello Al. How had your summer been?" Professor Venus asked him cheerfully as she sat next to him.

"Pretty good. How was yours?" Al responded, pausing his spell casting to look up at the stunning teacher. She had perfect blond curls, deep blue eyes and spoke with a honey sweet voice.

"Fantastic, thank you for asking," Professor Venus told the boy. Then she leaned in a little closer. "Would you please stay after class? I would like to speak with you." Al nodded and Professor Venus smiled. Then she went off the help the other students with their wand movements.

* * *

"Rose!" a voice called out the door. Rose spun around, nearly slipping on the dewy grass. Emmet walked on ahead to their Herbology class. Rose ran back to the door and peered through the shadows. Standing in the doorway was a witch in midnight blue robes that were pulled tight by the color-changing scarf around her waist. Her frizzy hair hung into her foggy eyes. Professor Higglebottom, the teacher of Divination and the Head of Ravenclaw House.

"Yes?" Rose said as she approached the witch.

"I received your letters. I also received Hope's. During lunch hour, I would like you and your friends to come to the staff room. It will be empty," Professor Higglebottom instructed. Before Rose could respond, the teacher turned and walked back into the dark corridors of the school, leaving the student staring after her.

"Rose! Hurry up!" Emmet yelled from the greenhouse door. Rose shook herself and ran towards the glass greenhouses.

* * *

"Al, I hope you know that I and Professor Higglebottom got the letters you sent us. And I have to confess that I'm worried about you," Professor Venus told Al as he sat down across from her desk.

"I don't mean to be rude, but I have History of Magic in ten minutes," Al interrupted his teacher.

"I understand, so I will make this brief. You seem to be more worried than the others. I wanted to ask you about your nightmares," Professor Venus explained.

"Oh, well, what do want to know?" Al asked her nervously.

"When you wake up, what do you find that you have done?" Professor Venus inquired, leaning closer, quill poised over a piece of parchment.

"Um, well, once my pillow had been turned into chocolate. Another time, I had a cut on my elbow," Al explained.

"And what about your friends?"

"Uh, well, um," Al stuttered, hesitating. He didn't feel comfortable disclosing personal information about his friends, but he was very worried about one of them. "Hope had a dream before we came to Hogwarts and she attacked Rose when she was sleeping. She also hurt herself another night. I'm worried about her."

"I'll watch her," Professor Venus assured him. A soft bell suddenly rang throughout the school. "You better hurry. Although, Professor Binns doesn't really care if you're late."

"Thanks!" Al called to her as he dashed out of her room and headed to History of Magic.

* * *

Transfiguration was a tedious and very depressing class taught by Professor Blackwood. She greeted them in tears, discussing the lack of appreciation for subtle magic, then gave them a twelve-inch essay due at the end of class. Astronomy was a very boring class, as Professor Zubarry had them review the constellations. SS and Al were relieved to get out the classroom and head towards the Great Hall for lunch.

"Guys!" they heard Rose yell. Together, they turned and were instantly flung to the ground by Hope. Giggling, she pinned their arms to the stone floor.

"Give me all your gold!" she cackled. SS wriggled out of her grip but Al was struggling.

"I only have sickles!" Al informed his friend. Hope rolled her eyes.

"You're useless!" she dramatically cried and fell off of Al. He groaned and sat up, turning red when he saw Rose and SS laughing.

"Oh!" Al muttered in frustration. "What did you want Rose?"

"Professor Higglebottom wants us to eat lunch in the staff room with her. She wants to talk to us about our summer," Rose explained as she smothered her laughter. "Come on!"

So the four of them walked to the ground floor, down a narrow hall that had all of the staff's bedrooms. Rose pushed open the first door on the right and her friends followed her in. The staff room was long paneled with mismatched chairs and a fireplace. Professor Higglebottom was sitting in one of the chairs near the fireplace with Professor Venus standing behind her. They both turned when they heard the children enter.

"I was beginning to wonder if you had forgotten us," Professor Venus laughed. It sounded false as it bounced off the walls. "Sorry."

"Hope," Professor Higglebottom said, her low voice carrying, "tell me about your dreams." The pale girl swallowed and took a step forward.

"I hear Albany. She shows me horrible things. Pressing darkness. My friends in pain. Then she laughs and calls me 'little snake.' When I wake up I always have my wand. Once I cut myself. Another time, I was standing over Rose, about to attack," Hope confessed quickly, as if afraid that if she didn't get the words out fast enough then she would never say them at all.

"I see," Professor Higglebottom mused, stroking her wand. Then she suddenly turned to the girl standing next to Hope "Rose, I sense you have something to say."

"Yes. I have a theory that the dreams will not come anymore. When we were at the European Cup neither SS, Al, nor I had any dreams. It is my belief that our magic is stronger together and if we are together Albany cannot reach us," Rose explained, glad to be included.

"Perhaps," Professor Higglebottom responded, nodding slowly. She turned away from the children and stared into the flames.

"Albany is very powerful," Professor Venus put in. Silence. "Perhaps the best way to know if Rose is correct is to test her theory."

"How?" SS asked.

"By letting you four go about your lives," the pretty professor replied. She turned to her friend.

"Albany is blocking my sight," the seer murmured and turned back to the children. "Albany still requires a life and she seems very intent on getting it from you. Be careful. Do not wander to far from each other. Your only safety lies in numbers."

"We understand," Al told his teachers then looked at his friends with worry. He knew he would die before letting them get hurt. He would rearrange the stars and the planets for his friends. If Albany wanted them she would have to go through him.

"Good. Your afternoon classes will be starting soon. You should go," Professor Venus told the children. They nodded and dashed out of the room. "Cassie, do you sense it?"

"Of course, Madeline. They are the ones we have been waiting for," Cassandra answered as the scarf around her waist turned dark blue.

"Do you think they understand?" Madeline asked, her beautiful face lined with worry.

"Not yet. But they will," Cassandra answered.

"Should we tell them?" the blond inquired, taking another step closer to her friend. The flames were reflected in the witches' eyes.

"Wisdom is gained through the search. If they do not have wisdom, then they will fail."


	6. The Weekend

Chapter Six: The Weekend

Bangs and crashes awoke Hope that Friday. She fell out of her bed and ran out the door, followed by her Twyla and Rachel. They knew what these sounds meant. They meant someone was dueling.

Two people, fifth years, were standing in the center of the common room, wands pointed at each other. But something in the air felt wrong. True anger and hate shaped the features of the two fighters. Tension rolled off their bodies and betrayal sparkled in their eyes.

"Hogwarts is a home!" Nate Hawley, the taller one yelled, shooting a jet of green light at his opponent.

"Not to us! Us Slytherins have never been welcome here!" the other fighter screamed as he ducked. Standing quickly Tom Murphy cast a stunning spell, his glasses slipping down his nose. Nate was thrown across the room, a bloody gash coloring his white skin while he pulled at his dark hair.

"You can't abandon it for evil! That will just prove everyone right!" Nate cried out as he stood up.

"I'm sick of being treated like I don't matter! I deserve glory beyond my wildest dreams!" Tom screeched in response, his long limbs trembling with anger. He flung a spell across the room that made a sofa explode.

Other students were getting antsy, as if the two duelers were talking about something inappropriate. But Hope was intrigued. It sounded like Tom wanted to run away but Nate didn't want to. But where would they go? Hogwarts was the best and closest school of witchcraft.

"Alright, enough!" Maya Willing, the new Head Girl, ordered as she walked in between the fighters. Her blond hair was hanging, unwashed, and her green and silver tie was thrown around her neck like a scarf. "Duels are not supposed to be a way to settle an argument. They are supposed to be a way to prove your magical knowledge. You both are hereby banned from the duels for the rest of the month!"

"You can't do that!" Nate exclaimed.

"We won't listen to you!" Tom protested.

"Would you rather clean all the school's chalk boards with your tongue?" Maya asked, smirking slightly as the two boys shook their heads and ran off to class. Twyla, Rachel, and Hope started heading back to their room.

"What do you make of that?" Rachel laughed as she pushed open the door to their dorm.

"Where else would they go? Isn't Hogwarts the best school around?" Hope wondered seriously.

"Uh, I'm not sure," Twyla responded and shrugged as she rooted through her trunk for a robe.

"You're lying!" Hope gasped, stunned. Twyla never lied to her. She believed in honesty. Sure, she may tell half-truths sometimes but she never _lied_!

"Why would I lie?" Twyla demanded and ended their conversation by walking into the bathroom.

"Rachel, do you know where they would go?" Hope asked her other friend. The pale girl laughed as she pushed a curtain away. She had changed with lightning speed into her school robes and laced up her hiking boots.

"No idea," Rachel drawled as she sat her hat on her chocolate hair. She was lying. Obviously. "Have a nice day!" She left. Hope felt like screaming. Her two 'friends' were lying, keeping information from her. Although, what did she expect. This was Slytherin, the house of ambition. The ends always justified the means in here.

"Hope?" Twyla whispered hesitantly as she came out of the bathroom. "Are you okay? You look paler than normal."

"Fine," Hope lied and stormed into the bathroom so she could change, knocking Twyla aside. She didn't need lying fake friends. She could do just fine on her own. Because, at the end of day, wasn't that all you had?

* * *

"We need to talk," Hope told Rose as she arrived at Herbology. She had run all the way from breakfast to ensure that Twyla and Rachel wouldn't be around.

"Why?" Rose asked, not really paying attention as she leafed through her textbook. Hope slammed the book closed to gain her attention. She was rewarded with a sharp golden glare.

"Something happened today in my common room. And Twyla and Rachel won't tell me what it means," Hope informed Rose who nodded. Her eyes caught two girls entering the greenhouse.

"Speak of the devils," she muttered and reopened her book. "We'll talk at lunch in the library. I'll let the boys know."

"Hey Rose," Twyla said when she arrived at the table. "How was your summer?"

"Fine," the red head replied coolly just as Professor Longbottom entered.

"Silence, please, silence," he called. "Alright. Who can tell me what a mandrake is?"

* * *

"Are you sure no one will notice our absence?" Hope asked Rose as they sat down at their usual table in the back of the library. Rose nodded and traced the carving SS had created on the last day of school. All their initials were forever immortalized in wood.

"If they do, just say you were getting a head start on your homework," Rose told Hope.

"I still can't believe our teachers would do that to us on the first day of school!" Hope cried out dramatically, flopping onto the table. Rose just rolled her eyes.

"You wanted to talk about something?" Rose prompted her diva friend. Hope nodded and sat up.

"Yeah. Today in the common room there was a duel," Hope started.

"I thought duels were normal in your common room," Rose interrupted.

"That wasn't the weird part. The weird part was that Nate, one of the duelers, was yelling that Tom, the other dueler, couldn't just abandon Hogwarts. But Tom kept insisting that he wanted glory. What I can't understand is how they would betray Hogwarts. And Twyla and Rachel know, I'm sure of it," Hope explained.

"Are you sure?" Rose asked her.

"Absolutely."

"Then I would just let it lie, until we have more information. We don't want to attract any negative attention, especially after last year," Rose suggested. Hope nodded in agreement. "But see if you can wheedle information out of them. They are your friends, so they might come around."

"Okay. I'll try," Hope assured her friend. The bell rang and the girls stood up. "Good luck in Astronomy!"

"Good luck in Transfiguration!" Rose called back and they ran their separate ways.

* * *

"Ferna, I can't do this," SS told his friend the next day as they walked to breakfast. The first week of school was over and all SS could remember was that he had a mountain of homework that he would need Rose's help on. But he couldn't work on it today. Because today was Saturday. Quidditch tryouts.

"Relax. You'll be amazing!" she declared and skipped into the Great Hall. But SS hung back. He could see Luff and Kim bragging to the other Gryffindors about their amazing abilities. And he didn't want to sit at that table and be mocked. Instead, he walked back to his dorm. Since everyone was at breakfast, it was blissfully empty. He changed into his Quidditch robes, the ones his father had bought him two years ago. They were a little snug, but they worked. SS then grabbed his broom, a Firebolt 2.0, and headed outside.

He walked onto the Quidditch pitch, pleased to find it empty. He hopped on his broom and took off into the sky. It was relief to be flying again, the wind in his hair, the freedom of soaring through the clouds. He laughed as he did flips and dives, enjoying the sensation in his stomach. Through his blissful enjoyment, SS heard someone yelling. He halted his broom and looked down to find a girl with glittering curly auburn hair pulled into a ponytail and skin the color of toast shouting at him. SS flew down and hopped off his broom. The tall girl approached him.

"What do you think you're doing?" she demanded. Although her height was intimidating, her brown eyes sparkled with laughter.

"Uh, flying," SS answered. The girl looked at him for a second before her lisp stretched into a smile a mile wide.

"You sure were! That was amazing! How'd you learn to fly like that?" she laughed, punching him lightly in the shoulder.

"Uh, my Dad taught me," SS told her. At the mention of his father the girl stopped giggling but kept her smile. However, now she seemed a little more guarded.

"I'm Roxy, beater and Gryffindor Quidditch Captain," Roxy introduced herself. Of course, how did SS not recognize her? She was George Weasley's son, one of Al and Rose's many cousins. "Nice to see someone here early. Shows dedication."

"Thanks," SS said. He started to hear laughter and looked over Roxy shoulder. Entering the pitch was the rest of the team. Freddy Weasley, Roxy's brother, was twirling his beater bat around, telling jokes to Louis Weasley, son of Bill and Fleur. He laughed as he strapped on his chaser gear. And one other boy followed them. James Potter. He sat down and began to polish his broom, also a Firebolt 2.0. His chaser pads were already cleaned up and strapped on.

"Hey guys!" Roxy called to them and ran over.

"Hey Roxy. Who's that?' Freddy answered and nodded at SS who looked at his feet.

"Shouldn't you be trying out for the Slytherin team?" James asked him. SS gripped his wand that was stashed in his pocket but Roxy intervened.

"James, shut up," she instructed, causing Louis and Freddy to laugh. Just then, the other Quidditch team hopefuls entered, along with other Gryffindor supporters. Ferna waved at SS as she climbed into the stands. Everyone gathered at one end of the field, near the goal posts. Luff and Kim glared at SS as they fell into line.

"Hope you got your bed in the Hospital Wing booked," Luff hissed at him. SS just swallowed and looked at Roxy who was standing in front of them.

"Alright, lions, listen up! We need three players to complete this team. One keeper, one chaser, and one seeker. So I want you all to divide into groups depending on what you want," Roxy told them all. Everyone began to shuffle around. SS headed towards the left side of the group where all the chasers were clumping together while Luff and Kim headed towards the seeker group. SS knew chaser wasn't a flashy position like the seeker but he liked it. That's when he realized that James was chaser.

"Okay," Roxy yelled once they had divided themselves. "I'll be testing out the seekers in the middle of the pitch. Louis will be run the keepers' tryouts at the other end and James and Freddy will be working with the chasers right here. And, break!" Everyone ran off, leaving SS with James, Freddy, and five other Gryffindors.

"Okay. First we're going to be testing your ability to dodge bludgers. Freddy will be hitting them at you and we'll be done when I say so," James instructed the group. He glared at SS for a moment before he nodded. The Gryffindors climbed onto their brooms and took to the skies. Before Freddy could join them, though, James whispered something in his ear and pointed at SS. That probably wasn't anything good.

Freddy flew up on his broom and James released a bludger from the box below. It flew up like a cannon ball and Freddy wacked it with all his might, straight at SS. He swerved upwards and the ball missed by at least five feet. Freddy flew around and hit the ball again, directing at SS for a second time. He dived out of the way. Freddy hit the ball again and again and again and every time he hit it, it came barreling towards SS. But he managed to dodge the ball every time. Finally, James got bored and yelled for everyone to come back to earth. The other five Gryffindors hadn't broken a sweat but SS was breathing hard.

"Alright, alright, not bad, not bad," James said as they all climbed off their brooms. He looked at SS and took in his sweaty robes. "Maybe the position's too tiring for you. I mean, that was just a warm up."

"James," Freddy started but his cousin cut him off.

"You obviously can't handle it. Give up," James continued but SS just glared at him. He took one last deep breath and then steadied himself.

"I could do that all day," SS replied. James raised a red eyebrow and glared for a moment before he moved on.

"Alright then. Now you'll be passing to each other while Freddy tries to knock you off your broom. Go!" James instructed and they all flew back into the air. James threw up the red Quaffle and a fifth year caught it. He passed it to a third year who tossed it to a sixth year who got nailed in the gut by a bludger. The sixth year groaned and dropped the ball. SS swooped low and caught it. Out of the corner of his eye he saw a bludger flying toward him. He pushed his broom up and flipped himself so he was upside down. The third year flew beneath him with her arms outstretched. SS let the ball go and she caught it. On the ground, the sixth year was laying down with an ice pack on his gut. He clearly was out of the running. One down, four to go.

For the next ten minutes they swerved and dodged and passed and caught. Freddy managed to hit the fifth year who passed out and a seventh year whose nose wouldn't stop bleeding. When Roxy came over, already finished with the keepers, it was just SS, the third year, and a fourth year. The captain watched them for a few minutes before she called them down.

"I would love to watch you all play until sundown," Roxy told the remaining three, "But Hufflepuff is having their tryouts at noon so we have to be out of here by then. Luckily, I've already chosen our seeker and our keeper."

"Please don't Luff, please don't be Luff, please don't be Luff," SS muttered to himself.

"Our seeker will be Grace Miller and our keeper will be Andrew Ashley," Roxy announced and SS breathed a sigh of relief. Both were fourth years and both neither of them were Luff or Kim. "Now I just have to pick a chaser."

"Uh, Roxy. I would like to suggest Emily Ashley, Andrew's sister," James put in, gesturing to the third year girl who stood on SS's left. "She has amazing skills."

"Yes, I saw. Thank you James," Roxy said. Although her words were pleasant, you could tell she was annoyed. "However, I would like our new chaser to be SS Malfoy!"

"What!" James roared. The other Gryffindors were stunned. Ferna's wild clapping could be heard very clearly over the silence. After a moment, others joined in and some even clapped him on the back in congratulations. Emily shook his hand.

"Great job," she told SS. "You were amazing."

"Thanks. You weren't too bad yourself," SS replied and she grinned before she ran to her friends in the stands.

"Alright team! Practices are every Monday and Wednesday at five! Be there!" Roxy yelled then headed back to the school for lunch. SS was suddenly tackled from behind.

"You did it, you did it, you did it! I knew you could!" Ferna cried out as she hugged him. SS laughed and pried her off of him.

"Thanks Ferna," he said.

"Come on," she insisted and dragged him over to Kim and Luff who were sulking with their other friends. Ferna halted in front of them, standing tall, wearing a smirk. "I won the bet. That means you guys leave us alone and you have to admit to SS that you're better then him!"

"You're hilarious," Luff declared and Kim rolled his eyes.

"What are you talking about? I won the bet," Ferna demanded, her smirk disappearing, anger filling her eyes.

"What bet?" Kim laughed.

"The bet we made at the Welcoming Feast," Ferna reminded them. Luff tilted his head, as if he was struggling to remember something.

"No, I don't think we made a bet," he replied, smirking slightly. Ferna's hands were balled into fists.

"We did! And everyone at the table can tell you we did!" Ferna yelled. Kim turned to one of the boys standing behind him.

"Do you remember that?" Kim asked him. The boy shook his head. The entire group did. "Guess it's all in your head, Ferna."

"You little, evil, slimy, cockroach!" Ferna shouted and lunged at him. SS grabbed her around the middle and pulled her back as she clawed at him. "You don't deserve to wear those colors! You don't deserve to be in this house!"

"Ferna, can it," SS whispered in her ear as he dragged her out of the pitch. Once they were out he released her and she began to pace. "It's fine, really. I don't care what they think."

"We had an agreement! We all agreed to the terms. Gryffindor's honor their word! How could they?" Ferna ranted. Just then, a group of Hufflepuffs approached, ready for their Quidditch tryout. And this particular group contained Al.

"Hey SS. Hey Ferna," Al called as he ran up, but paused when he sensed the hostility rolling off of Ferna. "What's wrong?"

"Those stinking cowards are a bunch of cheating, lying scumbags!" Ferna declared, her copper colored hair raging in the wind. Al looked at SS with confusion.

"Luff and Kim had a bet with Ferna that I couldn't get on the Quidditch team. I did, and now they won't honor their word," SS explained in a very dry tone.

"They don't deserve to wear the colors of Godric Gryffindor," Ferna hissed.

"Do you want me to talk to them? Or Hope? Hope would probably straighten them out real good," Al suggested. But SS waved his hand.

"No, that's fine. I don't care what they think," SS sighed and ran his hand through his white blond hair, ruffling it even more.

"Alright. I'll see you later?" Al asked. SS nodded and Al took off towards the pitch.

"Good luck!" SS called after his friend. Ferna was still steaming. "Ferna, will you please just let it go?"

"Fine," she groaned. "But only because you asked me to." Then she stomped back into the school with SS following, shaking his head.

* * *

"Al, you're trying out for Quidditch?" James gasped when he walked into the stadium. He nodded once at his brother before he jumped on his broom and took off to the sky. He took a deep breath and fought to keep the broom steady. Ever since his broom had bucked him off last year he had become even more fearful of riding one. "Good luck!"

Al grit his teeth as James cackled below with his friends. Al knew he may not be the best flier but at least he was trying. That was all he could do. Try.

Soon the air was full of Hufflpuffs. Their Quidditch captain was tossing a Quaffle back and forth with a small pod on one side of the pitch and some other Quidditch hopefuls were tossing a ball towards the goals against the team's keeper. Another group was searching for a snitch someone had released and the two beaters were hitting bludgers everywhere. It was kind of just a free-for-all.

Al kept his eyes peeled for the little golden ball. Even though he normally played chaser, he knew his father would want him to play seeker. So that was why he was flying all over the pitch, his worry increasing as time went on and he still hadn't found the allusive snitch.

Suddenly he heard yells and shouts. Al turned around too slow and was hit in the head by a bludger. Black spots danced in his vision and his body slipped off the thin broom. Someone screamed and Al began to fall. He vaguely wondered if James was still watching him. Then he blacked out as his body hit limbs.

* * *

"Al," a distorted voice called to him through the haze. "Come on Al, wake up."

"Uh," he moaned and his green eyes blinked open. SS and Rose were standing over him. When they saw that he was awake they breathed a sigh of relief. Rose sank into a chair and placed a hand on her chest to steady her breathing. SS stayed standing, biting his lip in worry. Hope sat in a chair at the end of Al's bed, munching on a box of chocolates that had been in the stack of candy sent by well-wishers.

"Glad to see that you're awake," Rose sighed.

"What happened?" Al croaked and he struggled to sit up. A wave of dizziness hit him straight between the eyes and he moaned at the pain.

"You got smacked in the face by a bludger," Hope replied casually and picked out another chocolate. "Ooh, toffee."

"Are you eating my chocolates?" Al groaned and sank back into the pillows, eyeing his dark haired friend.

"Only the ones you don't like," she answered simply.

"Al, what were you thinking? You're rotten at Quidditch!" Rose demanded, eyes angry and worried.

"I…I just needed to tryout," Al forced out and closed his eyes, hoping his cousin would stop. Of course she didn't.

"Why? Everyone know you stink so why did you insist on putting yourself through this pain and humiliation?" Rose continued.

"What do you think Dad would say if I didn't? He was the youngest seeker in a century. Or Mom? She was the Holyheaded Harpies MVP for five years straight," Al sighed. "I needed to at least try. For them."

"I get it," SS muttered. "You just rest."

"Can we go down to dinner now?" Hope put in. "We skipped lunch, remember?"

"Why'd you guys skip lunch?" Al wondered and he glanced at his friends. Rose and SS both looked away but Hope rolled her eyes.

"We needed to visit our idiot friend in the Hospital," she replied. Rose shot her a look but Al laughed weakly.

"Go to dinner. I'll be fine. I'll probably just sleep some more," Al told his friends. SS frowned.

"Are you sure?" he asked. "We don't mind staying."

"Go. I'll be fine," Al insisted.

"Thanks. And for what's it is worth, that was pretty gutsy for you do, going to Quidditch tryouts," SS told his friend then left the Hospital wing. Rose and Hope followed and Al was left alone.

He groaned and laid back down, his eye heavy eye lids beginning to fall. Before he drifted back to dream land, though, he had one thought. James was going to tease the crap out of him about this.

* * *

 _Dear Rose,_

 _I found these books of records that will probably help you. Let me know if you need anymore. I also found a book on advanced Healing Potions and new edition of 'Quiddich through the Ages.' I've sent them along as well. I do hope you like them._

 _Your father says to tell me that he'll send you whatever he wants because he's in charge of you. Don't worry, I won't let send you anything_ to _embarrassing. Your brother sends his best wishes, as do I._

 _Lots of Love,_

 _Mum_

Rose tore open the package her mother had sent on Monday along with the letter. Five musty old books filled with records along with the extra books her mother had sent her laid on a bed of fresh paper. Rose pulled them out and slipped them into her bag. Then she dashed out of the Great Hall where she'd just finished breakfast and headed to her dorm room to hide them.

She slipped the books into her desk, promising herself she would look at them after her classes were over. As she was walking back out of the common room she saw The Gray Lady.

"Hello," Rose called softly to her. The pearly women turned, her hair floating on a nonexistent breeze.

"Shouldn't you be in class?" The Gray Lady asked, eyebrow raised. Rose nodded.

"Yes, I should. I just wanted to thank you for telling me about your sister," Rose answered, a small smile on her lips. Helene looked at her for a moment before she smiled softly and drifted through a wall, out of the tower. Rose jumped as she heard the bell ringing for first period. With worry in her steps, she raced to class.


	7. A Halloween Duel

Chapter Seven: A Halloween Duel

September passed in a blur. SS struggled to juggle homework and Qudditch but Rose helped him immensely. Hope suggested she start charging him. Al found the secret entrance to the Hogwarts' kitchen and Rose researched her muggle family trees until she was blue in the face. More students disappeared and concern began to grow amongst the staff. Time passed so fast that they almost didn't realize it when Halloween arrived.

* * *

James laughed as a first year Slytherin fell into a patch of mud. Irons high-fived him and laughed as well. SS and Hope were watching the idiots from across the lake. Hope was literally holding SS back.

"It isn't worth it. You'll just get in trouble," she warned him.

"He's tormenting those kids. We have to do something," SS protested as he tried to free his wrist. Hope rolled her eyes and looked back at James who had just blown a short Slytherin girl's notes away. She clenched her teeth in anger and SS struggled to break free of Hope's hold.

"Choose your battles," she told SS. The blond paused for a moment before he yanked his wrist back and stood up.

"I choose this battle," he declared and stomped around the lake, headed towards James.

"Of course you do," Hope groaned and followed him.

"Nice one, James," Atwood told his leader. James laughed and jinxed another Slytherin first year. His nose began to grow until it was as long as a yard stick. He shouted in fright and dashed back to the school. The other first years glanced around nervously, then gathered their stuff and ran after him. James laughed in victory.

"That's right, run away you stupid snakes!" he shouted after them. Atwood and Irons laughed dumbly.

"Hey!" SS yelled and stumped in front of James. The shadow that fell across the eldest Potter's face made him look dark and cold, evil in a way. "Quit picking on people half your size. Thought you were a Gryffindor."

"Ha! You wouldn't know Gryffindor if it hit you in the head!" James laughed, a cruel smile curling his lips.

"I know that we're supposed to respect other houses. Godric and Salazar were the best of friends, once upon a time. And those kids are first years, so leave them alone," SS replied and began to turn away.

"Why do you care? Defending your kind?" James taunted. SS turned back around and narrowed his gray eyes. His hand was already fingering his wand in his pocket. "You don't like me picking on them because you know that you belong with them."

"When are you going to come up with new insults?" SS responded, eyebrow raised, face calm but body tense.

"Sorry. You don't like me picking on the snakes because your friends with them. And you say _I'm_ a disgrace to Gryffindor," James amended and nodded towards Hope. She glared at him and stood taller, her limbs vibrating.

"Try me," she hissed, her voice deadly calm. Atwood bit his thumbnail nervously. Hope seemed to ooze power and might so SS couldn't blame him.

"I'd love to. Tonight. While everyone's at the Halloween Feast. Right here. You two can bring the rest of your posse. We'll _try you_ ," James said and walked away, his two lackeys in tow.

* * *

"You did what?" Rose yelled at her two friends after they had explained their plans for the evening. "I cannot believe you two!" SS and Hope sunk down in their seats.

"You should have heard what he said about Hope," SS weakly protested.

"I don't care what he said!" Rose shouted back, pacing furiously. Al took a few steps back, not keen on being in the way of the wrath of his cousin. "You should have let a teacher handle it or you should have just let it go. Do you have any idea how much trouble you'll be in if you're caught!"

"Then we won't get caught," Hope put in. Rose slammed her hand on the table and everyone jumped. Madame Heydt, the librarian, glared at them from her front desk, causing Rose to turn red. She lowered her volume.

"That is not the point. I thought you two knew better than that!" Rose told them.

"You're going with us," Hope remarked, her head tilted to the side. Rose rolled her eyes and sighed.

"Of course," Rose scoffed, as if it was obvious. SS put his head in his hands.

"You're so weird," he groaned and turned to Al, knowing what he was thinking. "You don't have to come."

"But you're my friends. And James is my brother. And you need someone who isn't comfortable breaking the rules with you," Al countered and started biting his thumbnail. "I'm coming with you."

"So who's actually dueling?" Rose asked.

"All of us against all of them," SS explained and rolled his wand between his fingers.

"Then we have a good shot. We have superior numbers," Rose speculated.

"But they're older and more knowledgeable," Al protested. He had moved onto his index finger nail.

"Please," Hope laughed. "They're all as dumb as a donkey's backside." SS chuckled and even Rose smiled. But Al still looked upset.

"You don't have to come," SS reminded him. Al shook his head and squared his shoulders.

"I'm not abandoning you to the mercy of my brother," Al replied. "We're going to be fine. We can do this." It sounded as though he was trying to assure himself as much as the others.

* * *

The four second years walked past the glowing Great Hall and out of the castle, heading towards the tree standing at the other side of the lake. James, Atwood, and Irons were already there, waiting for them. Hope walked with an eerie calm. SS had his shoulders back, his posture was confident. Rose's eyes were narrowed and the hand that held her wand out in front of her so it could light the path trembled slightly when she saw the boys. Al had his shaking hands hidden in his robe pockets, trying to swallow his fear. But it was nearly impossible.

"You came," Hope remarked with surprise as she stopped in front of James, arms crossed. Her friends fell back, letting her lead.

"Of course I did. I'm a man of my word," James replied, a smirk on his lips, his wand flipping over his fingers. In the moonlight his red hair looked like blood.

"You're a boy, not a man," Rose scoffed. Irons sneered at her and Rose tilted her chin up in superiority.

"Are you here to talk or duel?" James asked, brown eyes narrowing.

"Let's duel. Hope you have your bed booked in the Hospital Wing," Hope told him and stepped back.

"You speak well but there is no way that you are more powerful than me. My father is Harry Potter. Who's yours, Hope?" James laughed and pointed his wand forward. Rose and SS flanked their friend and aimed their wands at Atwood and Irons. Al stood behind the group, trying to not look like a target.

"Why don't you just cast your little jinxes," Hope growled. James opened his mouth to cast a spell but Hope beat him to it. "FLIPENDO!" James dodged and the spell hit Irons, sending the blond into the tree he stood in front of. A low groan let the duelers know that he was in pain but still alive.

"FURNUNCULUS!" James yelled and a blazing white light hit SS. Boils erupted on his skin and he cried out in surprise. James smirked at the sight of SS wincing in pain. Rose and Hope raised their wands it sync.

"FINITE INCANTATEM!" Rose said simply, healing SS.

"LOCOMOTOR MORTIS!" Hope yelled, wand sending sparks towards James who pushed Atwood in front of him. The brunette's legs latched together and he fell flat on his face. James's eyes had taken on an angry glow and he growled low in his throat.

"INCARCEROUS!" James yelled. Ropes lashed out and tied up Rose, squeezing her tight, curling all over her like a snake. "INCARCEROUS! INCARCEROUS!" Ropes tied up Al and SS as well, making them fall to their knees. The ropes pulled tighter and tighter, causing Rose to croak out in pain.

"You're hurting them!" Hope protested, outraged by the display she saw. James laughed, a cruel clear sound.

"It's a duel, darling. And now it's just you and me," James replied, smirking.

"Help!" Rose chocked out as the rope curled around her neck and began to strangle her. Hope wanted to help her but she knew the moment she did, James would try something and hurt her. She had to deal with James first.

"You want to duel?" she hissed, anger taking over her mind. "Let's duel." She slashed her wand through the air and a beam of green light flew towards James. It hit the tree behind him as he dodged, leaving the bark smoking. James stared at it and a flash of fear took over his face for just a moment. But then he was a picture of anger again as he flicked his wand.

"PERTRIFICUS TOTALUS!" James yelled and red light flew toward Hope who just flicked her wand and deflected it.

"You really think that's going to stop me?" she screamed at him. The noises of her friend's pain egged her on. "You will lose because I am more powerful than you could ever wish to be!"

Hope flicked and slashed with her wand, sending bolt after bolt of green light. James couldn't dodge forever. Eventually, a beam hit his leg and he fell to his knee. Al squeaked out in fear for his brother but the duelers were far from over. James cast spell after spell from the ground, speaking so fast that all his words blended together. Hope deflected them all. She walked closer and closer, her green strands of light cracking and swirling like whips.

"EXPELLIARMUS!" Hope declared when she was three feet away from the kneeling red head. James's wand flew out of his hand and into the Great Lake. James shouted in anger but it made no difference. Hope had won. But James didn't want to admit defeat.

"You'll never win," he growled. "By the time you figure out how to free your friends, they'll be dead."

"You would kill your own brother for what?" Hope demanded. She gripped the front of his robes and pulled him close, anger coursing through her body, ready to snap. James laughed, despite the burning pain in his injured leg.

"For glory," James simply answered. "You might want to let me go so you can save your friends." Hope glared into his brown eyes before she threw him to the ground.

"Fine. Run away," Hope hissed and turned sharply on her heel. She ran back to her friends. When she glanced back she saw James taking Atwood's wand and undoing the jinx on him, then instructing him into the tree to find Irons. Hope realized his plan too late. James aimed Atwood's wand at Hope.

"INCENDIO!" he yelled and a jet of flames shot, not towards Hope, but towards Al. Hope screamed and leaped in front of him, dropping her wand accidently, throwing her arms wide. A green light shot from her palms and formed a wall, shielding her and her friends. The flames sputtered and died as they hit the wall. Al gasped for air behind her and Hope dropped to the ground. She tried to yank on the ropes but they wouldn't budge. Al's breathing was shallow and the ropes were tightening even more. Desperation clawed at Hope's heart as James yelled taunts from the other side of the green wall.

"No, Al, please don't die," Hope begged. Suddenly, her hands began to smoke. The rope she was holding crumbled to ashes. Al's lungs sucked in air like it was gold. He groaned gratefully and turned over, still unconscious. Hope stared at her hands for a moment before she realized what she needed to do.

She ran over to SS and placed her hands on the ropes. They disintegrated into ashes as well. Only SS was still conscious. He blinked in surprise at his friend. Then his face grew angry. Slowly, he stood and pulled out his wand. SS walked forward, through the green wall, and faced James.

"Hope, save Rose," he instructed the crouching pale girl. She nodded and crawled over to her last friend. Meanwhile, SS stared down James, who now had Irons and Atwood at his sides. James was still holding Atwood's wand, so Atwood had his fists up, ready for a fight.

"Surprised to see you up so soon," James growled. "You should have died."

"Sorry to disappoint," SS replied, face blank. Behind him, Hope had freed Rose and was trying to see if she was breathing.

"Oh, you won't," James assured SS.

"Come on, Rose," Hope muttered and tried remember some healing spells. "SS, she's not breathing!"

"You did this," SS growled. His friend was dying and the person who had caused it was right in front of him. His vision turned red and tunneled, focusing on James. "You will pay."

"As if," James laughed. But red searing light was already headed straight toward him. James barely jumped out of the way in time. Atwood and Irons didn't, though. They fell to the ground, severely burned. "Are you trying to kill me?"

"You tried to kill me!" SS yelled back and sent another wave of red light from his wand. James ran behind the tree which burst into flames. "Thought you were a Gryffindor! Come back and fight, coward!" SS chased James, constantly shooting bolts of red light at the running red head. He screamed and started running back to school. When SS was sure he wouldn't come back he ran to his friends.

Hope was sobbing over Rose who was now breathing shallowly. Al, who had regained consciousness, was rubbing his hands over her head, a soft yellow light emitting from the connection.

"What happened?" SS demanded as he kneeled at Rose's side.

"Al woke up. He healed her," Hope muttered, stunned. She wiped her eyes and forced herself to take a deep breath. "You did it. You beat James."

"You sound surprised," SS remarked and held Rose's hand. He was happy she was okay but he was a little jealous that _he_ couldn't save her.

"Just impressed," Hope responded. Al sat back and took a few ragged breaths. Then he noticed Irons and Atwood laying in front of tree with severe burns.

"You hurt them?" Al gasped and raced over to them. He pressed his hands onto the two injured boys and almost instantly their burns began to heal. A soft yellow light glowed from their skin as well.

"I didn't mean to. It was an accident. I don't even know what happened," SS admitted, shame beginning to creep into him.

"It's fine. We'll figure it out," Hope assured him then lowered her volume. "Did you know that Al could do that?"

"No. I didn't know you could make a wall. I didn't know I could burn people. I didn't know Al could heal people," SS sighed and put his head in his hand. "Rose, please wake up. We need you."

"We should get back to school. Sneak into our dorm rooms, try to hide any evidence that links this duel to us," Hope suggested and Al walked back to them.

"They're still unconscious but I healed all there burns. And don't ask me how I did it because I don't know," Al muttered.

"We won't. We all did things we don't understand yet," Hope sighed and jostled Rose. Her golden eyes flashed open and she gasped. "Oh thank Merlin, you're awake."

"You...," Rose gasped, looking at Hope. "You were amazing. Where did you learn to do that?"

"I don't know. But we can discuss it later. We need to get out of here," Hope told her friend and helped her stand. "Remember, we were never here."

"I'm not really comfortable lying," Al admitted. Hope's dark eyes narrowed as SS held onto Rose's other side.

"It's not lying. It's just not telling to truth," Hope explained and the group hobbled back to school.

* * *

"Hope," Professor Venus called as the dark haired girl began to leave Charms class on Monday. "I need to talk to you."

"What about?" Hope asked innocently as she sat across from the curly blond teacher.

"Two boys were found at the Great Lake Friday night with severe burns which were partially healed. James Potter told us where they were. He said _you_ attacked them and threw his wand in the lake," Professor Venus answered coolly. "Care to explain?"

"James is lying. I wasn't there," Hope replied, giving one of her sparkling smiles. "You know how he loves attacking Slytherin house. I wouldn't put it past him to frame all of us."

"I am well aware of the boy's feelings towards your house. However, he also mentioned that SS was with you when you attacked the boys," Professor Venus continued.

"James has hated SS since the day he first boarded the Hogwarts Express. And SS will assure you that we were not there. Al had received some sweets from the house elves in the kitchen, which were undercooked, and we didn't feel right so we stayed in our common room during the Halloween Feast. Our dorm mates can attest to that," Hope told her teacher and stood up. "Is that all?"

"I guess. Perhaps the boys were having a duel with each other and went overboard. However, causing that sort of damage to a person is very advanced magic. Whoever did it could not have been a second or third year. They might not have even been a seventh year. The magic was _that_ powerful," Professor Venus sighed and shuffled some of her papers. "You are free to go."

Hope ran out of the room, straight to the library. Rose was at their normal table, going through thick ancient books and heavy stacks of notes. She glanced up as she heard her friend approach.

"Hey, Hope. I don't have any new information. The only thing I found was that the magic we did should not have been capable at our age," Rose sighed and flipped the pages of a heavy text that sent dust into the air.

"It's fine. Professor Venus just talked to me. They found Atwood and Irons. They're fine. But James is trying to pin their injuries on me and SS," Hope began as she sat across from Rose.

"Are you guys in trouble?" Rose demanded, leaning closer.

"No. There's no proof. Everyone knows how much James hates us, so everyone thinks he's lying. Plus, we were all sick in bed due to the under baked sweets Al gave us," Hope replied smugly, smirking slightly as she crossed her arms.

"Okay, I admit it. You're pretty smart," Rose laughed and shook her head so her bushy hair swayed.

"I know," Hope giggled. "You'll figure it out. It'll just take time."

"Time we don't have," Rose groaned. "Every day more students are disappearing. Everyday Albany remains silent. And our magic is now unpredictable. I can't help but feel like everything is connected."

"We'll figure it out. Why don't we go bug Al for something to eat? You look hungry," Hope suggested, her hand on Rose's.

"I did skip lunch," Rose admitted.

"Then let's go!" Hope cried and dragged her friend out of the library in search of their sweet carrying friend.


	8. Spies

Chapter Eight: Spies

November arrived with a chill in the air. Three Ravenclaws and a Hufflepuff had vanished one night. Roxy increased the amount of Quidditch practices and Rose was getting annoyed at the lack of results she was finding. Hope and SS were growing concerned as they watched her friend pull away, just like she did last year.

* * *

"Hey, boys. Do you guys know where Rose is?" Hope asked her two friends as they approached the Great Hall. She was waiting for them, like always, with her arms crossed.

"No, why?" Al responded, straightening his tie.

"I haven't seen her since Astronomy. She said she was busy but she hasn't come to dinner yet. She's late. Rose is never late," Hope explained, worry clouding her voice.

"I'll find her. She's probably at the library," SS assured his black haired friend and turned around. He walked down the hall and pushed open the heavy oak doors. Madame Heydt gave him a sharp look but he just smiled and walked down the numerous shelves of books.

SS approached their table at the back of the library, finding Rose. She had a bunch of notes spread across the table along with high stacks of books. She seemed frantic. SS wondered how long she'd been here and if she even knew the time.

"Hey," SS called out softly. Rose jumped and looked up, eyes sparkling with fear. When she saw it was SS she visibly relaxed.

"Oh, SS, hi," she sighed and sank back into her chair, snapping her book shut and shoving it in her bag. "What do you want?"

"I was wondering if you were okay. It's dinner time and you're late," SS told her and sank down into one of the four chairs. Rose glanced away and flipped through her notes.

"Oh, I'm fine, just fine," she muttered and pushed a piece of red hair behind her ear.

"Really?" SS asked, laughing slightly. Rose glared at him with her sharp golden eyes. "I'm just saying, you seem stressed."

"I'm not stressed," Rose snapped. SS raised a white eyebrow and smirked slightly. "I'm just…worried."

"About what?" SS asked.

"All the students who are missing. The fact that my cousin James is being a tool. We haven't heard from Albany since the European Cup. Plus, our crazy magic that I _still_ don't know anything about," Rose ranted.

"Right," SS groaned. "Well, look on the bright side. We're all still here. And we're almost halfway done the semester!" Rose just looked at him. "Come on! Get excited!"

"Why? We have so much to do and so much to figure out. Like our magic or all the disappearing students and I can't even begin to understand what my ancestry means!" Rose exclaimed.

"What was that last part?" SS inquired, his laughter gone. Rose's eyes widened, realizing what she just said. Quickly, she stood up and shoved her books and notes in her bag.

"Nothing. Nothing what so ever," Rose spit out and started walking away. SS reached out and grabbed her wrist.

"Rose," he said, completely serious, gray eyes piercing. "What's wrong?" She swallowed and opened her mouth. But then, at the last minute, she clammed up, yanked her wrist away, and walked out of the library, leaving SS alone at the table. He sighed. "Nice talking with you."

* * *

Rose stalked down the hallway and flung herself into a broom closet. Now that she was alone, she let everything out. Her tears dampened her robes as she sobbed on her knees. Agony, pain, fear, and worry all poured out of her. What was she going to do? She had no idea what her ancestry meant. She was terrified that it meant that she had an enemy who would never stop hunting her. She was fearful that Albany would win and she would end up in a grave next to Aunt Muriel.

As Rose cried out in worry and fear her hands began to glow. She didn't notice it, too busy in her own mind. But soon the blue light became too much for her to ignore. She glanced down and nearly jumped out of her own skin.

It was happening again, the crazy magic that had manifested on Halloween night. But what did it mean? Magic without a wand was something that even the most skilled wizards struggled with. She was just a twelve-year-old kid. And yet, even as she stared in disbelief at her glowing hands, the light got brighter until Rose was forced to look away. A sizzling sound reached her ears and she opened her eyes. The cleaning supplies that Miss. Overby, the Hogwarts caretaker, had in the closet was burnt to a crisp.

Rose sucked in a deep breath that smelled of ash and slowly left the broom closet. No one was in the halls so she snuck down the hallway into the Great Hall where dinner was commencing. Still shaken from her incident in the closet, she didn't notice that everyone at her table had gone quiet.

Emmet glanced at Rose with worry. His friend looked shell-shocked. She numbly spooned some mashed potatoes onto her plate. Gradually, the table started talking again.

"Rose?" Emmet whispered and nudged the red head. She elbowed him in the gut.

"Don't touch me," she snapped and grabbed the butter dish.

"Okay. Sorry. Are you okay? You look a little…stunned. Did you already hear about Mackenzie?" Emmet asked cautiously and gently. Rose's head snapped up and she looked at the sand blond haired boy with worry.

"No. What about her?" Rose demanded.

"She's gone. Left right after class. Disappeared just like all the others," Emmet answered.

"No," Rose sighed. "Oh no. Do you know where she went?" Emmet shook his head.

"No, I don't. But I think some of the other students do. They just won't tell me," Emmet replied and glared at some of the older students. Rose frowned slightly, then stood up. She had an idea. "What are you doing?"

"I need to go. I have to talk to my friends," Rose said and began to walk towards the door. As she left, she caught all of her friend's eye and nodded towards the door. They got the message and got up to follow her.

"But you haven't even eaten anything!" Emmet called after Rose. She didn't respond and headed out into the hall. Emmet sighed and went back to his broccoli.

* * *

"Mackenzie is gone. She left after class," Rose told her friends as they all sat at their table in the back of the library.

"So? Lots of students have been leaving," SS responded.

"Like Rachel. She left after class as well," Hope added bitterly. Al reached out and placed his hand on her. She shrugged it off. Rachel was no longer her friend. She had turned cold and distant and then she left. Hope didn't care if she never came back. "So, why is Mackenzie so much more important than the rest?"

"Because Emmet told me that some of the other students know where she went and where the others went as well. Plus, she and Rachel are the first second years to leave. Everyone else who left was either in third year or higher," Rose explained.

"That means it's safe, right?" Al interrupted, chewing on his thumbnail in nervousness.

"No necessarily," Rose replied.

"You have an idea," Hope suddenly said, looking at Rose. "Why am I worried?"

"We need people who the other kids trust. Someone they'd be willing to share information to. Someone who would then be willing to share that information with us," Rose explained.

"Spies. You want us to get spies," SS sighed.

"Who?" Al asked, shocked. Spying felt wrong to him. Who on earth would do such a thing?

"Twyla and Ferna. They're loyal to us but can get into other groups, right?" Rose suggested, looking at SS and Hope with her eyebrows raised.

"Sure, I can ask Ferna. She's really nice," SS put in. Rose's jaw tightened for a moment before she nodded. Then she looked at Hope who was staring at the ceiling.

"I'll ask her. But don't expect her to agree," Hope replied and stood up. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm still hungry."

"Here," Al called after her and pulled a paper bag out of his book bag. "Cookies?"

"Awesome!" Hope laughed and took the bag.

"Alright, let's go get some spies," Rose declared and the group left the library, ready to tackle their next challenge.

* * *

"No," Twyla said simply and shoved a cookie in her mouth. Hope glared and snatched her bag filled with backed goods from Al back.

"Why?" Hope demanded.

"Because I don't care if a bunch of students are leaving. It just means I have less annoying people to deal with," Twyla responded and reached for another cookie. Hope smacked her hand.

"No spying, not cookies," Hope growled. Twyla rolled her eyes.

"Why don't you ask Rachel?" she asked, annoyed.

"Don't you know?" Hope wondered.

"Know what?" Twyla snapped.

"No one's seen Rachel all day. All her things are gone as well as one of the school brooms. She left," Hope informed her Slytherin friend. Twyla froze for a moment before she shrugged.

"So? I don't care," she said and shrugged. But Hope could detect the lie. Twyla cared very much.

"Fine. I guess you can't do it anyway," Hope sighed and slipped off of Twyla's bed. She headed back towards her own bed and stuffed a cookie in her mouth.

"Say I do you the favor. If I'm caught I'm not going down alone," Twyla suddenly said as she too stood up. Hope paused and turned around.

"Meaning?"

"You'll come down with me," Twyla explained simply, hiding the threat with toneless words. Hope thought for a moment before she nodded.

"Seems fair," she replied and extended her hand. "Shake on it."

"You know that second years can't do unbreakable vows, right?" Twyla asked.

"I know. But shaking hands still symbolizes an agreement," Hope told her. Twyla shrugged and extended her own hand. As the pale and dark skin touched a small green spark singed their palms. Both girls winced and pulled back.

"What was that?" Twyla demanded.

"No idea," Hope confessed and twisted her hand over. Nothing had changed. But then Twyla made a startled noise. "What?"

"Look at this," she told the pale girl and extended her dark palm once again. A pale scar in the shape of snake was cut into her skin. "Did you do that?"

"No," Hope insisted. Then she began to wonder if she had. Her magic had been recently become unpredictable, often causing disastrous results recently. "I'm sorry."

"It's fine. Kind of cool, actually," Twyla admitted. The scar then faded, as if it had never been there at all. "See? No harm done. I'll figure out what I can. But don't expect fast results. Everyone knows that you and I are sorta friends."

"I know. I also know that you'll succeed," Hope told her sorta friend. Twyla rolled her eyes and walked out the door of their bedroom. Hope sighed in relief. She hadn't been sure she would be able to convince Twyla to help her. But she had been confident. She just hoped her friends were faring the same.

* * *

"Of course I'll help," Ferna told SS happily the next day.

"Really?" SS asked his friend in disbelief as she practiced the stunning spell on the dummy across the Defense Against the Dark Arts classroom.

"Of course. We're friends. Besides, I think I already know some stuff. Tristan Luff constantly flirts with me during Charms and keeps telling all this boring stuff about a better place. He wants to leave Hogwarts and he wants me to come with him. EXPELLIARMUS!" Ferna yelled and the thin wand flew out of the dummy's hand.

"Thanks Ferna. You're the best," SS told his friend. She turned and stuck out her hand.

"Let's shake on it," she said. SS extended his hand and as his pale palm hit her tan one a red spark lit up and hurt their skin. "Ow!"

"Oh Merlin, Ferna, I'm sorry," SS apologized, fearing it was his fault. Ferna didn't say anything. Instead she stared at her palm where a white scar in the shape of a lion was disappearing into her skin.

"How did you do that?" she whispered in awe.

"I have no idea," SS admitted. Ferna stared at him for a moment before she turned back to disarming the dummy. They didn't say a word to each other for the rest of class.


	9. A Discovery

Chapter Nine: A Discovery

They waited weeks but Twyla and Ferna found nothing. Hope was the first to lose heart, quickly followed by Rose. But Al kept their hope alive, encouraging them to be patient. Finally, though, something was discovered.

* * *

"Hope, Rose, can I talk to you and all your friends after class?" Twyla asked the two in Herbology.

"Why?" Rose inquired, leaning forward over the Devil's Snare they were pruning.

"I found something. But I can't tell you here," Twyla responded and smacked the plant as it wrapped a vine around her wrist. Rose looked like she wanted to ask more questions but Hope nodded.

"Alright," Hope answered and picked up the titanium foot long sheers, ready to tackle the prickly plant in front of her.

* * *

"I found something under Rachel's bed. I was looking to see if she had forgotten anything that could be a clue," Twyla explained to Hope, SS, Rose, and Al as they sat at the back table of the library.

"I already searched her bed," Hope protested.

"Rachel was crafty. She had a compartment inside her headboard. I found it when I noticed that the grain of the wood was different," Twyla responded. Hope glared at the dark girl briefly before she nodded.

"What did you find?" Rose demanded. Twyla reached into her robes pocket and pulled out a small pin. It was an Arctic wolf outlined in purple.

"This. I don't know what it means. But I think that anyone wanting to leave would have one. I'm pretty sure she forgot it," Twyla told the group. SS took it and felt its cool metal, trying to understand something.

"Thank you. We'll try and figure out what it means," Hope assured her friend. The look in Hope's dark eye told Twyla to leave. She hesitated for a moment before she understood that the group would not reveal their secrets to her. So Twyla stood up and left. The group instantly relaxed and leaned in close. SS placed the pin in the middle of the table and Rose stroked it with her index finger.

"An Arctic wolf. What does it mean?" she wondered aloud.

"Maybe they're joining a wolf pack," Al suggested. Rose gave him a look. "Or maybe not."

"Asphodel," Hope muttered. SS turned to her.

"What'd you just say?" he asked.

"Asphodel was wearing white wolf ears when she attacked me before school started. I just thought it was a bizarre fashion statement. But do you remember how Albany constantly talks about wolves?" Hope realized.

"Each house has a symbol. Albany's symbol might be the white wolf," Rose continued, eyes widening in fear. "This isn't good."

"But where are the students going?" Al put in.

"They're going to Albany. She's building an army," SS stated with a steely voice.

"But how?" Al wondered.

"Dreams. Twyla has nightmares every night. I hear her scream and scuffle in her bed but she never says anything," Hope explained.

"That's why she's not trying to reach us. She's busy recruiting students for her army, students who minds aren't protected like ours," Rose exclaimed.

"What do we do?" Al whispered. He had no idea what to do. He couldn't protect people's minds.

"We hope Ferna's found something," SS replied and the group nodded in agreement.

* * *

"Actually, I have found something," Ferna admitted as she and SS walked down the halls to the library to meet the others. "But I'm worried. I've been having nightmares and Luff has been telling me all sorts of things but I don't know what it means."

"That's what Rose is for," SS assured her and pushed open the heavy oak doors. Madame Heydt nodded towards them as they headed to the back of the library. Rose was browsing an old book and Hope was reading a stack of notes while Al was struggling to finish an essay for Transfiguration. "Uh, guys, I brought Ferna."

"Oh, wonderful," Rose breathed, relived. She slammed her book shut and Hope pushed the notes into Rose's bag. Al quickly finished his essay then turned to Ferna, his full attention on her.

"Have you found anything?" Hope asked her. Ferna nodded and sat down, across from the group.

"Luff keeps talking about how Hogwarts sucks and how it really has gone to the dogs. He said he would love to transfer schools," Ferna began.

"Where else would he go?" Al interrupted.

"That's what I asked him," Ferna continued. "And he asked me if I've been having dreams."

"Dreams?" Rose inquired. Ferna nodded.

"Yes. I told him I had. And he asked if the Headmistress had asked for my presence yet. I lied. I said I hoped she would soon. Luff told me he felt the same, although he was glad that she trusted him enough to have a task here. I asked him what it was. He wouldn't tell me," Ferna finished.

"The Headmistress? Caroban?" SS repeated, confused. Ferna shook her head.

"What's her name?" Rose questioned her.

"I don't know. She hasn't told me in my dreams. And she hasn't asked for me yet. A voice keeps asking me if I want more. She'll give me power, but I don't want it," Ferna assured the group.

"Everyone's been having these dreams?" Hope gasped.

"Everyone does seem more tired this year," Al put in.

"What does this woman look like? Have you seen her in your dreams?" Rose demanded, leaning forward, quill posed over a scrap of parchment for note taking.

"She's glowing with a purple light. Her eyes remind me of a cat and she wears a tiara made of thorns. She's powerful but dark," Ferna answered, worry creeping into her voice before she could halt it.

"She's not just raising an army. She's starting a school," Al realized. Rose shot him a look and he clammed up.

"Who?" Ferna asked, curious.

"It doesn't matter. Thank you for telling us this. If you find out anything else, like this task Luff has, let us know," Rose instructed her. She cast a confused look at SS who nodded. Ferna then smiled and left.

"That's were everyone's been going. Albany's school. She's training them for her army," Hope muttered.

"And if they all like her school better, they'll want her to take over Hogwarts. That's what she is doing. She's trying to take over our school," Rose sighed.

"What do we do?" Al cried.

"Now? Keep our ears open and get all the information we can. Try to stop people from leaving," Hope instructed.

"I'll tell Professor Venus and Professor Higglebottom," Rose added and the group stood. With a grim mood, they left the library.

* * *

"We suspected as much," Professor Venus admitted as she shuffled some papers on her desk.

"Excuse me?" Rose gaped, shocked. How could her two teachers know this already? Moreover, if they had, why hadn't they told her?

"We knew Albany had something to do with it. Professor Higglebottom found out," Professor Venus answered.

"Where is she?" Rose demanded body tense.

"She's doing her daily readings. I wouldn't disturb her if I were you," Professor Venus suggested and began to grade an essay. Rose slammed her hand onto the desk, startling the teacher and grabbing her attention. Rose was tired of not being noticed.

"Why wouldn't you tell us this? Isn't this information we could've used?" Rose growled.

"You, child, did not need to know this. We didn't want to frighten you. But we didn't know that Albany had created a school. It was my hypothesis that she was brainwashing the children," the teacher replied.

"Do you know anything else, anything that I may want to know?" Rose asked. Professor Venus chewed her lip, thinking. There was so much Rose probably would _want_ to know but there was so little she _needed_ to know.

"No. Nothing else. Just please be careful," Professor Venus finished. Rose sighed, nodded once, and left the room. Madeline stared after the child, worry on her face. She alone knew that Rose would face many hardships if she wanted to succeed. But she didn't need to know them quite yet. It would only serve to make her more worried.


	10. A Quidditch Match

Chapter Ten: A Quidditch Match

As November passed, Rose continued her frantic search through old books, trying to find the reason for her and her friend's crazy magic and attempting to trace back her muggle family tree. Hope helped her research the magic and Al assisted by supplying cookies. But SS was swamped with his homework and Quidditch practices every other night. He was exhausted every night but knew that Roxy was right to push them. The first game arrived right before everyone left for Christmas, in late December.

* * *

"Alright team, listen up!" Roxy yelled as she paced the floor in front of her team in the locker room. The first Quidditch game of the season had arrived and everyone was excited for the traditional match of Gryffindor vs. Slytheirn. "We've put in the hours! We've put in the sweat! And we've put in the energy! There is no doubt in my mind that we are able to win! So let's go beat some snakes!" The rest of the Quidditch team cheered and raced out onto the field and got into position.

"I want a clean match, alright?" Coach Campbell, the bald flight instructor told the team captains as they shook hands. James walked up to receive the tip off as Roxy flew back to the beater position. Coach Campbell blew his whistle and everyone took to the skies.

James caught the Quaffle and flew towards Slytherin's goals. As a beater swung a bludger at him, James tossed to ball up to Louis who grabbed it and put on a burst of speed, desperate to get to the goals. The chasers in green flew out to meet them and caused Louis to drop the ball. SS reached out to catch it but James swooped in and stole it, causing SS to veer off course to avoid being hit. James sped towards the goals and tossed the Quaffle but Slytherin's keeper caught it and tossed to the other side of the pitch. The Slytherin spectators roared and SS could hear Hope screaming along with them.

James, Louis, and SS took off after the Slytherin chasers who moved as one unit, their movements perfect. Roxy smacked a bludger at them, causing the team to scatter. She zipped past SS and held up four fingers. She wanted the chasers to try maneuver four. SS nodded and flew below his fellow chasers.

"Four!" he yelled up at them. Louis gave nod up but James just sneered and sped up. They maneuver was supposed to be that Louis and James would fly on either side of the chaser with the Quaffle while SS swooped in front of him, startling the player. But James seemed to be taking alpha position, flying high above the middle Slytherin chaser. Confused, SS tried to fly towards him to ask him what he was doing. But James just flew faster. Louis gestured for SS to take James's spot. So he flew on the left side of the chaser, slowly closing in. Louis mimicked him on the right. The other Slytherin chasers realized what was happening and started to fly to their teammate.

SS and Louis continued to close in on the chaser when James suddenly dived. But he was too far left. The Slyterin chaser veered away from him and James nearly smacked into SS. Louis tried to fly after the chaser in green but he couldn't do it alone. The chaser flung the Quaffle and scored. The green section of the stands screamed in delight.

"James, what the heck was that?" Roxy yelled as she flew over to the chasers. SS glared at his fellow chaser. The red head glowered as he flew up to his cousin.

"SS was going to screw up! I had to do something!" James protested. Roxy clenched her jaw and began to resemble her mother.

"We practiced that move five million times! SS is the best diver out of all the chasers. He would not have screwed it up!" Roxy retorted.

"It's his first game. He has nerves," James responded.

"James, so help me, if you do something like that I'll clobber you with my beater bat!" Roxy threatened then turned to SS and Louis. "Try a wedge maneuver to break their chasers' formation. And _SS_ will take the lead!"

"Got it!" Louis replied and did a mini salute. James looked like he wanted to say something but he kept his mouth shut. The rest of the team flew off to their posts and SS flew up to Coach Campbell for the tip off.

"Alright, let's go!" the bald man yelled and threw up the red ball. SS caught it and began to streak towards the Slytherin goals. Louis was below him and James was above, warding off the other chasers. Roxy and Freddy kept the other beaters at bay. They were getting close and the Gryffindors held their breath in anticipation.

Suddenly, James dove in front of SS, causing him to abrupt halt. Everyone shouted in surprise but SS could care less. He continued towards the goals, not caring what the stupid Potter was doing now. But then he heard the cries of outrage coming from the crimson section of the fans. SS glanced down and saw that James was chasing the golden snitch.

"What the?" SS gaped. The Slytherin and Gryffindor seekers were on his tail, shouting at him. SS swallowed and threw the ball to Louis. Then he hurtled towards his teammate.

SS's broom raced towards James who was following the ball higher and higher into the air. Suddenly the ball began a sharp dive. James and the seekers followed. SS flew up to James's side.

"Get out of here, Malfoy!" James yelled, eyes intent on the tiny glittering ball.

"What are you doing, James? Only seekers can catch the snitch. You're going to get us in trouble! We'll have to forfeit the game!" SS screamed into James's ear. The Potter growled and flew faster. "What are you trying to prove?"

"I said get _out_ of here!" James hollered and shoved SS. The blond fell off his broom and the entire crowd gasped. But strangely, SS felt no fear. Time seemed to slow down. SS seemed to know exactly what to do. He stretched his limbs so his Quidditch robes spread out and slowed his fall. SS turned his head and spotted his broom falling towards earth. He reached out, wrapped his fingers around its woody handle, pulled it close to him, and mounted it again. In SS's mind this seemed to take minutes but in real life it only took mere seconds.

"James!" SS cried out as he sped after the red head. Knowing the boy wouldn't listen to reason, SS tried for a more physical approach. He flew straight down and slammed into James. The two of them fell off their brooms and tumbled ten feet through the air and landed painfully on the ground. SS felt a zip of pain shoot through his ankle. James was spitting out wads of grass, his leg bent at a funny ankle, when they heard shouting behind them. SS turned and saw Gryffindor's seeker, Grace Miller, holding the snitch high up in the air, her strawberry blond ponytail swinging. Gryffindor had won!

"We did it!" Grace yelled in triumph. Louis patted her on the back then went over to help James. Then Roxy landed. SS took a step back, her eyes shown so bright with anger.

"What. On. Earth. Were. You. Trying. To. Do?" Roxy demanded, her brown eyes spearing James as Louis helped him stand. Her voice was steely calm, like a volcano just before it erupted.

"I was _trying_ to win the game," James muttered and glared at SS. "Before _he_ knocked me off my broom and broke my leg."

"SS saved our team! If you had caught the snitch, we would have been kicked out of the match!" Roxy yelled, letting her temper erupt. "What on earth were you trying to do? I have no idea where your head has been lately, James! As of now you are no longer on the Gryffindor Quidditch team!"

"What? Roxy, you can't do that!" James protested.

"I'm captain! I can do what I want! Emily Ashley will be replacing you," Roxy retorted. Then she spun on her heel and left the pitch. The rest of the team followed, except for Louis who helped his friend to the hospital wing. SS tried to feel bad for James but all he felt was the pain in his ankle. He felt nothing for James.


	11. Shocks and Findings

Chapter Eleven: Shocks and Findings

SS cautiously approached his friends. They were all staring at their astronomy books since they had a test tomorrow. As SS walked closer Al pulled out a bag of cookies he had snagged from the kitchen and handed them to the girls. Rose smiled and Hope took five. Al laughed as he watched her stuff her face like a squirrel. SS took a deep breath, hating himself for what he was about to do.

"SS, great job yesterday at the game. Want a cookie?" Al asked when he saw his best friend. SS shook his head and stood before his friends. Al scrunched his brow, knowing that something was wrong. Rose glanced up from her notes and squinted.

"What?" Hope demanded, apprehension knotting her stomach.

"I have something to tell you," SS told the group.

"Then tell us," Rose said slowly, almost fearing what he would say. SS took a deep breath and stared up at the tall arching ceiling of the library.

"James is gone," he whispered simply and softly. Rose broke her quill. Hope slammed her book shut. Al's jaw dropped. "He left last night with his friends, Irons and Atwood. I woke up last because I heard something. When I looked out my window I saw the three of them flying away on brooms with their trunks attached. I think yesterday's Quidditch match was the final straw. I'm so sorry."

"Are you sure?" Rose asked slowly, as if willing it not to be true.

"I'm sorry," SS repeated.

"Well, it's not a huge loss," Hope put in and went back to her book.

"He's my brother. It _is_ a huge loss," Al gasped, shell-shocked.

"Come on, Al. We all saw this coming," Hope told her friend.

"I didn't," Al muttered, tears filling his eyes. He blinked quickly. SS sat next to his best friend and put his hand on his friend's shoulder.

"Love has blinded you. You didn't see it, but it was brewing for a while," Hope explained to Al.

"Why do have to say it like that?" Rose demanded. "James is my cousin, Al's brother. He's with Albany. We don't even know if they'll be safe. We have a right to worry."

"Sorry," Hope mumbled. "But if James left then he must have known that it was safe."

"Not necessarily. James likes to show off, jump into danger. It doesn't matter if it's safe. James craves adventure," Rose protested. Al swallowed hard and stood up, shoving his books into his bag.

"I think I've studied enough. I'm going to go back to my common room," Al announced and rushed out of the library. The three remaining friends stared after him.

* * *

James was gone. He had turned away from the light and embraced power, dragging Atwood and Irons with him. And all that was left was a confused and heartbroken Al. Sure, James could be difficult and mean. But he was still his brother. Their shared blood should mean something.

Al walked the halls, consumed by his worry, not noticing the time or realizing that he was supposed to be in Transfiguration right then. He was so distraught that he didn't even know where he was, where he had been, or where he was going.

And due to that fact, Al had no idea that he was walking down a seventh floor hall. That is why Al didn't notice the beginnings of a door appear on the wall to his right. It took him a moment to hear the strange creaking behind him.

Al whirled around, wand out, terrified of attack. But then he noticed that it was just an old and badly burnt door swinging lazily on its rusty hinge. Al walked closer. He had never seen this door before. Was it just the usual Hogwarts magic or something more?

Al pulled open the heavy door, expecting something amazing, and saw that all that was in the room was air. The wooden floor was very burnt and some of the boards were broken. The walls were a plain beige and were covered in scorch marks. An open window in the ceiling let in some sunshine, but not much. To summarize, the room was very boring and dull and badly burnt.

Al was disappointed. He had been expecting something amazing. But this room was just a room. He turned to go. But then he felt a tingle run down his spin. He turned back. A wooden post with a sign on it was slowly rising out of the ground, like a plant. But it stopped when it rose two feet. Al walked closer, curious. The sign on top of the post was a faded black board with a piece of chalk resting in the ledge on the bottom. Suddenly the yellow piece of chalk sprung up and began to write on the blackboard. Al leaned closer so he could read the words it was writing.

" _Welcome back Madame. I've missed you_ ," the chalk wrote.

"I'm a boy," Al told the sign. It felt strange but his voice seemed to make the room seem less empty. And it was easier talking to this sign then remembering the news SS had brought him earlier.

" _Strange. I thought I sensed the presence of my Mistress, Helga Hufflepuff. Who are you?_ " the chalk wrote under its previous statement, as if it could hear Al.

"I'm Al. What, who, are you?" he asked the sign is disbelief.

" _I'm the spirit of this room_ ," the chalk answered.

"What room is this?"

" _Why, this is the Room of Requirement_ ," the chalk told him. Al's jaw dropped. His father had told him about this room. It had been an amazing feat of magic but fiendfyre had destroyed the room in his father's seventh year. Al couldn't believe it was still functional.

"How are you still here? I thought this place was destroyed?" Al gaped.

" _Those foolish boys damaged me severely. But I survived. However, I will soon fail. I used all my energy to appear because I thought you were Helga and would be able to heal me_ ," the chalk wrote, drooping slightly.

"I'm sorry. Is there anything I can do?" Al asked.

" _No. Not unless you are as powerful as Helga Hufflepuff. But thank you. You are very kind_ ," the words said. Al sighed and pulled out his wand. It was a soft brown, made from alder wood, with a unicorn hair inside, 9 1/2 inches long.

"REPARO!" Al called out softly and pointed the wand at one of the walls. Golden light streamed out of his wand and hit the burnt beige surface. One of the burn marks disappeared. Al stared in wonder. Should he be able to do that?

" _Did you just fix a section of my walls?_ " the chalk asked, moving extremely fast.

"I... I guess I did," Al admitted, examining the brown wand. How had he done that? Fiendfyre was extremely powerful and the damage was supposed to be irreversible.

" _Do it again_ ," the chalk ordered.

"REPARO!" Al said again with a little more confidence. Even more burn marks disappeared and a hole in the wall mended itself. "I'll be right back. I've to go find Rose!

" _Wait!_ " the chalk wrote, but Al was already gone.

* * *

"Rose!" Al yelled as he ran into the library. Madame Heydt glared at him.

"What are you doing here Mr. Potter?" she demanded. Al flinched at his last name but Madame Heydt didn't notice. No one ever did.

"I'm looking for Rose. I need her help," Al hurriedly explained. Madame Heydt rolled her eyes.

"Yes, I surmised as much. But what are you doing here? Are you not supposed to be in class?" she said sharply, lowering her spectacles. Even though she was six feet tall, she still wore insanely tall heels so she could tower over everyone.

"Uh, I, um, lost track of time. I'll go to class right away," Al told her, swallowing his embarrassment and shame. James skipped classes. Al did not. He was a good boy.

"See that you do," Madame Heydt dismissed him and turned back to a stack of books she was inspecting for damage.

Al sighed and headed out the door. He climbed one staircase, turned right, and climbed another one. He had never missed a class before. What was wrong with him?

As he ran past closed classroom doors a chime sounded throughout the castle. The doors flew open and students filled the halls like a flood. Al squeaked in fear of seventh years and scurried to a window seat. As he climbed up on top of the bench he searched the crowd for his cousin's familiar frizzy red hair. But he found nothing in the sea of tall people.

"Al, what are you doing?" a girl asked him as he slumped on the bench. Al looked up and saw his cousin Roxy walking toward him. Her Gryffindor tie was lazily slung around her neck and a stack of books were resting in her arms.

"I was looking for Rose but I don't think she's here," Al admitted, hoping his cousin could help her find his friend.

"Is she in the library?" Roxy suggested. Al shook his head. "Do you know what class she just had?"

"I don't even know what time it is," Al sighed and looked down. "James left this morning."

"I heard. I'm really sorry," Roxy told him softly and sat next to him. "If it's any consolation, I never really liked him."

"Roxy!" Al cried, indignant.

"Kidding, kidding," Roxy laughed. "Honestly Al, you have to lighten up."

"I'm plenty light," Al grumbled and stood up. "I need to go find Rose."

"Al!" Roxy called after him but Al pretended not to hear. He ran towards the Great Hall and on his way ran into SS.

"Where were you? Leon said you missed Transfiguration!" SS demanded, worry evident in his voice.

"Sorry. Do you know where Rose is?" Al asked his friend as he looked around the hall.

"I think she stopped by the library," SS told him. Al groaned. He was just there!

"Thanks!" he gasped and took off running again.

* * *

Rose groaned as yet another branch of her family ran dry. She had been studying the records her mother had given her for weeks now and had found nothing. She traced the ancestry of every single person on the list but it always came up dry.

Rose flipped open another muggle book and began tracing another branch. She scoured every book for any mention of her relatives. She went back years, decades, and even centuries. Finally, she got to the time of Rowena Ravenclaw.

Rose flipped another page and nearly screamed aloud. There. Right in the middle of the page was a thin black line connecting Harriet York to Avery Granger. There it was. Proof that she was indeed the descendant of Rowena Ravenclaw. Emotions whirled through her like a hurricane. Her brain seemed to be frozen. This meant something. Something huge.

"Hey Rose," someone said softly. She glanced up and quickly slammed her book away, pushing into her bag before anyone got a chance to read the title. Al stood before her, his black hair messier than usual. "What are you reading?"

"A book for an extra project I'm working on," Rose answered quickly, guiltily looking away. Al didn't notice.

"I found something and I need your help. Can you come with me?" Al asked hurriedly, trying to get all his words out at once.

"Sure. What is it?" Rose replied, standing. Al grabbed her hand and dragged her out the door and up the nearest set of stairs.

"You wouldn't believe me if I told you!" Al laughed. Suddenly SS and Hope ran up from the basement stairs.

"So, where we going?" Hope asked in singsong voice. Al just led on.

"Well this ought to be interesting," SS remarked as he followed his friend.


	12. Answers and Mysteries

Chapter Twelve: Answers and Mysteries

"What are we doing here?" Rose asked her cousin. Al just smiled and walked past the wall in the seventh floor corridor. As he took his fifth step a strange creaking noise echoed in the high ceilinged hall. SS's jaw dropped and Rose's eyes widened as they saw an old creaky door appear on the wall. Hope walked forward and placed her hand on the rusty door handle.

"What is it?" she whispered. Al grinned, placed his hand on hers, and pushed the door open.

The room seemed to be even worse than when Al had found it. Cobwebs grew on the ceiling and walls and boards in the floor had rotted away. The only thing that was the same was the section of wall Al had fixed.

As the group entered the broken room and same sign grew out of the floor boards. Rose stared at it, circled it, and observed it from all angles. SS's hand traced a burn mark on the wall while Hope hung back in the entryway.

" _You came back_!" the chalk wrote on the sign. Rose jumped back.

"Al, is this the Room of Requirement?" she asked slowly.

"Yeah, how'd you know?" Al wondered, amazed by how fast she realized it.

"The burn marks and the location," Rose explained. "How did you find it? I thought it hadn't been opened for years?"

"It just opened when I walked by. And look, I fixed a section of the wall!" Al admitted.

"What? Why did it open to you? And how did you fix some of it?" Rose demanded, confusion and fear circling her mind.

"Maybe it just likes him," SS suggested.

"You can ask it," Al told his cousin. Rose looked at him like he was nuts. "Excuse me, spirit of the Room of Requirement, why did you open to me?"

" _I thought you were my mistress, Helga Hufflepuff_ ," the chalk answered. SS's brow rose in surprise while Rose turned extremely pale as she read the sign.

"You thought that he was Helga Hufflepuff?" she repeated very slowly. Al looked at her in confusion, hoping for an explanation for her worry. But none was given.

" _An easy mistake to make. And you wouldn't happen to be Rowena Ravenclaw, would you?_ " the sign wondered. Rose sucked in a sharp breath and turned around. She grabbed both boys and dragged them out of the room, shoving Hope along. Then she slammed the doors shut and took a deep breath.

"Rose, are you okay?" Al asked his cousin. She slowly lowered her golden brown eyes from the ceiling and looked at her green eyed cousin. She took another deep breath.

"I'm going to go talk to Professor Venus and Professor Higglebottom. Al, I would stay out of that room if I were you. It seems dangerous," Rose told him.

"I thought it seemed sad and lonely," SS protested. Al nodded in agreement. Rose's gaze turned sharp and menacing.

"Don't go back in there," she snapped. "It's dangerous." Then she stormed away, angry steps echoing in the hall. Hope mumbled something and followed her. Al sighed and placed his hand on the fading door of the Room of Requirement.

"Do it," SS told him in a low excited whisper.

"What?" Al sputtered, drawing his hand away as if it had been stung.

"Go fix the room. I know you want. Do it," SS insisted.

"But Rose said it might be dangerous," Al protested, although the longing to reenter the room leaked into his voice.

"Come on," SS groaned and leaned against the wall in despair. "What's life if you don't live a little? And besides, did that place feel dangerous? Rose is probably wrong."

"Rose is never wrong," Al replied instantly. SS just rolled his gray eyes and gave his best friend a look. Al chewed his lip nervously, his gaze drifting back to the door. SS began to bounce on the balls of his feet with excitement as he realized Al's defense was crumbling.

"Do it, do it, do it, do it," SS chanted in a whisper. Al laughed softly and sighed.

"You're a horrible influence," Al told his friend and pulled the door back open. SS cheered and dashed in after his friend.

"Let's make some magic happen!" SS yelled to the burnt room and Al whipped out his wand, enjoying the thrill of not listening to his cousin.

* * *

"Okay, what was that about?" Hope asked her friend as she fell into step with a storming Rose. The red head shrugged.

"I don't know what you're talking about," Rose replied briskly. Hope rolled her dark eyes.

"Why'd you freak out when the sign asked if you were Rowena Ravenclaw?" Hope continued.

"I didn't," Rose snapped at her friend. Hope sighed.

"You're nervous about something. What about?" she persisted. Rose didn't answer and turned sharply to the left. "Do you think the sign knows something we don't?"

"Would you just stop? I have to figure something out!" Rose cried out in exasperation.

"Sorry. I'm just trying to help," Hope spat out, angry. Rose had done the same thing last year, pushed all her friends away. Hope thought she was past that but apparently she wasn't. Hope turned to go.

"Hope, wait," Rose called out to her. The dark haired girl turned around, hands on hips. "I'm working on something and I'm really worried about what it means. I'm hoping Professor Higglebottom will have some answers."

"About what?" Hope drawled, lips pursed.

"Something Albany said to me last year," Rose admitted. "Why don't you come with me? It'll be easier and faster if I explain it to you and Professor Higglebottom at once."

"You haven't told her?" Hope inquired, stunned. The two of them had already spoken about how much they needed to trust the two professors. Rose sighed and started to walk towards the North Tower.

"I wasn't sure if I should share this information. It's dangerous," Rose continued. Hope trotted after her friend.

"All right. Let's go!" she exclaimed.

* * *

"Professor Higglebottom!" Rose called as she entered the Divination class room. Hope closed the door in the floor once she too had entered. The room was draped with silks and filled with cushions instead of chairs. Herbal tea was brewing over the fire and the open windows let in a small breeze which made the wind chimes sing.

"Rose," a voice replied from behind a door that led to a separate room. "I was wondering when you would arrive."

"I hate it when she does that," Hope muttered to her friend.

"Professor, I would like to speak to you about something. It's about my ancestry," Rose began and stood straight but Hope could sense the tension rolling off her friend. Professor Higglebottom pushed open the heavy wooden door and entered her classroom. Her fizzy hair was frizzier than normal due to the humid air. Her eyes were wide with worry but also pride.

"What about your ancestry?" the teacher asked, eyebrow raised.

"I am the descendant of Rowena Ravenclaw," Rose stated with no emotion in her voice. But her trembling hands gave her away.

"What?" Hope gasped in shock. Professor Higglebottom didn't move. She just stared at the frizzy haired Ravenclaw.

"I am, aren't I?" Rose demanded, stepping closer to the skinny seer. Silence. "Answer me!"

"I'm sorry, what's going on?" Hope mumbled, shaking her head, trying to take it all in.

"Professor?" Rose yelled, her voice shaking the eardrums of her teacher.

"How did you come to that conclusion?" Professor Higglebottom whispered.

"Albany said some things last year. I traced my family trees. I found out the truth," Rose explained.

"Well done," Professor Higglebottom said with a smile.

"You knew, didn't you?" Rose continued, eyebrow raised, flames in her golden eyes.

"Of course I did. You have a very ancient, very _powerful_ magic. Through your mother's line runs the blood of Rowena Ravenclaw," the teacher answered. Rose nodded, her eyes staring into space, her mind going at light speed.

"Wait, what does that mean?" Hope interrupted. Professor Higglebottom turned to the dark haired girl.

"It means that Albany will stop at nothing to kill her. It also means that she has the power to defeat Albany," the professor replied.

"She'll stop at nothing?" Hope repeated in fear. She glanced at Rose but she looked a million miles away. The professor nodded and Rose seemed to come back to earth.

"Al. He found the Room of Requirement and he can fix it. The room thought he was Helga Hufflepuff," Rose muttered, as if trying to connect the dots in her mind. "Al's the descendant of Helga Hufflepuff."

"Yes. The Potters are descended from her. Why do think your uncle Harry was so caring and loyal to his friends?" Professor Higglebottom sighed as sank onto one of her poufs.

"So, me and him are descended from two of the founders of Hogwarts?" Rose murmured.

"Yes," the frizzy haired teacher answered.

"And that's why Albany hates us so much," the frizzy haired student added. Professor Higglebottom nodded.

"That's what you've been researching. Your family trees, trying to find ties to Rowena," Hope suddenly gasped, finally understanding.

"Albany mentioned that I was the Daughter of Wisdom and the Gray Lady mentioned that there was a possibility that Rowena could have had descendants. I've been researching it since I got to Hogwarts," Rose explained and looked at the jingling wind chimes. Their sound seemed to sooth her.

"And what about me and SS? Albany tried to kill us too," Hope put in.

"I'm not sure," Rose sighed. She hated not knowing so she turned to her Head of House. "Professor Higglebottom? What do you think?"

"I think you need to figure out the answers on your own. That is the only way to gain the wisdom you will need," Professor Higglebottom said and stood. "I will see you girls later." Then she turned and walked back into her personal quarters, leaving Hope and Rose staring after her.

"Well that was a load of crap!" Hope cried out in anger. Rose just stared at the wind chimes. " _'Yes, I clearly know things. No, I'm not going to tell you anything. Have a nice life!'_ "

"' _A man only becomes wise when he begins to calculate the approximate the depth of his ignorance,'_ " Rose quoted. "Searching for the answer builds wisdom, something we're going to need if we're going to fight Albany and Asphodel."

"Why do we have to fight them? Why not some Aurors?" Hope whined and sunk onto a pouf that sparkled in the fading sunlight. A clock dinged in the distance Dinner was fast approaching.

"Albany attacked us. She made this personal. And Al and I are descended from two of the founders of Hogwarts. We have the power," Rose spoke, as if in a daze.

"What about SS and me? We're just supposed to support and follow you guys even though we aren't _special_ or _powerful_?" Hope demanded angrily. She was used to being treated differently because she was a Slytherin. But she was now seriously annoyed. Professor Higglebottom and Rose just expected her and SS to blindly jump into danger even though they didn't have powerful ancient magic. And now Rose was just staring into space, totally enwrapped in herself. Rose blinked, as if waking up.

"But you are special. I can tell. Albany attacked you too. I just have to find out why," Rose told her.

"Fine. Let me know when you _finally_ find out why I'm special!" Hope yelled and climbed back down the silver ladder that led to the classroom.

Rose was in shock for a moment before she followed her friend down the ladder. But Hope was gone. Run off to somewhere else, full of anger towards Rose. And now Rose was filled with guilt. She had been so scared, and maybe even a little proud about her newfound ancestry. But in her awe, she had pushed her best friend away again. But she knew Hope would calm down. She was logical and reasonable. They would talk when Hope had calmed down. They would be fine. Or at least Rose hoped so.

* * *

Fine. She wasn't special. Hope could accept that. But the way Rose looked, as if she had always known she was better than Hope. That made her mad. Then there was that ingrate of a teacher. The one Rose agreed with. They needed answers! Not just loose phrases and the instructions to go on a wild goose chase! Albany and Asphodel could attack at any moment. And they wouldn't be any more prepared than they had been last time.

Hope stormed into one of the girl's bathroom and splashed water on her face. Heat was coursing through her veins. She hadn't felt this mad since Rose had froze her out last year. She didn't want that again, although it was becoming very obvious that Al and SS had a budding bro-mance and would be leaving her with Rose. But that wouldn't work if Rose was freezing her out. She'd end up alone. And even though she had her Slytherin friends, it just wasn't the same. Sure, the Slytherins shared her beliefs and interests, but Al, SS, Rose, and her had all survived near-death experiences together. They thought differently than her and challenged her. Hope didn't want to admit it but she needed them.

"Oh, it's you," a voice grumped from behind her. Hope turned around, expecting a fellow student, but instead found a pearly transparent ghost of a fifteen-year-old girl.

"I'm sorry," Hope replied and shrugged. "Who did you think I was?"

"A very nice boy has been coming into my bathroom but I think you scared him off," the ghost moaned, her wide eyes behind her glasses filling with tears. Realization began to dawn on Hope.

"You wouldn't happen to be Myrtle, would you?" Hope suggested. The ghost tilted her head and studied the living girl.

"You didn't use my full title," Myrtle noted. Hope quirked an eyebrow. "Most people call me _Moaning_ Myrtle."

"Why?" Hope asked, confused.

"Because people are mean!" Myrtle wailed and dove into a toilet, splashing water along the cracked tile. Hope laughed lightly.

"Tell me about it," she sighed. "Why are you haunting a bathroom?"

"This is where I died. I came back to haunt a mean girl who teased me about my glasses but she got the Ministry involved and I was banished back to my bathroom," Myrtle moaned as she came out of the toilet and seemed to lean on the stall door.

"That sucks," Hope remarked. "How did you die in a bathroom?"

"I've been told that the entrance to the Chamber of Secrets is in here. Tom Riddle was calling his snake and I was crying in a stall because Olive Hornby teased me about my glasses. When I opened the stall to tell him to go away I died!" Myrtle cried out dramatically, reenacting her death as she spoke. Hope was beginning to grin. She had heard storied about Moaning Myrtle before but they had her all wrong. She was hilarious.

"Wow, that's really cool," Hope said after the ghost had finished with her story. Myrtle beamed.

"Thank you! So rare that someone appreciates my death story!" she replied with a smile. Hope glanced at the sink that had never worked.

"Is this really the entrance to the Chamber of Secrets?" she asked with hesitant excitement.

"Mmhm. You know, you're the second person this year to ask about it," Myrtle remarked as she drifted back into her toilet.

"Really?" Hope murmured, not really listening, and examined the sink. A carving of a small snake was scratched onto the faucet. In the flickering candle light, it almost looked like it was moving. Hope's dark eyes stared at it and began to imagine it opening and revealing a place that only _she_ could enter. A haven for abandon Slytherins, a tool to get back at enemies. A yearning to enter the Chamber over took Hope and she traced the snake scratch with longing. " _I wish you would open up._ "

Suddenly, the sink began to move. It sunk into the floor and out of view, revealing a pipe large enough for a very fat man to slide into. Myrtle peeked over the wall over stall and watched. Hope slowly climbed into the pipe and sat on the precipice of the slide. She didn't exactly want to go in, she just wanted to sit on the edge of something powerful and wonder how she had opened it. A footstep sounded behind her and Hope began to turn around. But just before she saw the new person in the bathroom, two hands roughly pushed her down the pipe.

Hope screamed and twisted, trying to get a good look at whoever had shoved her, but she saw no one. Now she was at the mercy of the giant metal slide that was so steep it felt like she was just free falling. Hope screamed until her voice was hoarse. Then, thankfully, the pipe leveled out and she was shot onto a patch of moist mold and moss. She swore and stood up, hating the feeling of water soaking through her shoes.

"Great. Now what?" Hope asked the silence. She knew she should have looked for a way out but now she had an opportunity to explore and her curiosity was pulling her forward. So she pulled her wand out of her pocket and turned towards the long hallway. "LUMOS!"

Hope walked cautiously down a long hallway that led to a grand door. Snakes adorned it, their gem eyes glinting in the wand light. Hope stared at them for a moment.

" _Are you going to open?_ " she wondered. The snakes suddenly began to move and screech. The door swung open and Hope entered the chamber.

She spun around, taking it all in. Pillars in the shape of snakes towered high above her head, disappearing into the shadows, giving the room a greenish hue. A silver box sat at the end of the chamber simple and boring. And a huge white marble statue stood at the end, at least twenty feet tall. The face was the same face carved onto the bust back in her common room. Salazar Slytherin.

Filled with awe, Hope walked forward and examined the statue. He had a rippling beard but no hair. His face was regal and he seemed to be smirking. Salazar held his hands out, as if summoning all the forces of nature. It was quite a fear-inducing statue. But something struck Hope as peculiar. Unless she was mistaken, Hope and Salazar had very similar noses. And, unless the sculptor had been a terrible artist, they both had abnormally long fingers.

Hope's eyebrows scrunched as she thought. How had she opened the entrance to the chamber? The legend said that only the heir of Slytherin could open it and it had to be opened with parseltounge. Hope had wished the snake to open up but had she spoken the language of snakes? That was absurd! She couldn't talk to snakes. However, Hope suddenly remembered, a snake had once talked to her when she was young. Could she speak parseltounge?

And if she could, wasn't that ability only passed on down the line of Salazar Slytherin? And the only last known descendant of Slytherin was Voldemort. Hope's gears in her head began to spin themselves into a frenzy as pieces of a puzzle began to form a picture.

Her mother living alone, separate from all of civilization, even muggles. Her strange ability to talk to snakes. The certainty of the hat when it sorted her. The snake that had leaped out of her wand the first time she held it. The fact that she had no idea who her father was. Albany had ordered her to be attacked and always called her 'little snake.' Everything seemed to fit. Rose was the descendant of Rowena Ravenclaw. Al was the descendant of Helga Hufflepuff. Why couldn't she be the descendant of Salazar Slytheirn, the daughter of Voldemort?

Hope sat down with shock. Everything worked. But why would her mother never tell her? And why was she so young? Voldemort had died 20 years ago and she was only twelve. But despite this fact, certainty settled into her bones. This had to be true. It was the only thing that made sense, logically. But Hope still couldn't wrap her head around the possibility, despite the certainty staring her right in the face.

Suddenly the chamber seemed cold and cruel, a place where people had died. Hope stood up and ran back to the pipe slide that was the entrance. But she realized her problem as soon as she reached it. How was she going to get out? Hope ran her hands all over the pipe and the walls nearby but she found nothing that could help her. She had only one thing that could help. Her wand.

Hope pulled out the thin stick and mentally recited all the spells she knew, trying to find one that would help her. There was nothing. Nothing she knew could make her fly. Hope sighed and began to think of spells she had never done, but had heard of. Suddenly, an idea struck her. Hope crawled into the pipe and climbed as far into it as she could. When she reached the slant she planted her feet, took a deep breath, and focused.

"ASCENDIO!" Hope yelled and pointed her wand at her feet. White light fired from its tip and she was blasted upward like a rocket, banging against the pipe. She screamed form exhilaration and fear as she acquired more bruises then she could count. Finally, she was shot out of the pipe, into the bathroom and painfully flew into one of the stalls. Hope's head smacked the marble toilet and the last thing she remembered was Myrtle's pearly white eyes staring at her with worry. Then everything went black.

* * *

" _Thank you so much!_ " the chalk wrote on the podium. Al smiled with pride as he took in the finally fixed Room of Requirement. The walls were now a smooth brown and unburned. The mahogany floors sparkled under the candles. Not a speck of dust was in the room and everything had been polished until it shown. And Al was exhausted. He had been focusing his entire being through his wand into, fixing this room. It had taken three whole hours but he had finally done it. He had fixed the Room of Requirement.

"Wow. That was amazing," SS told Al. He had watched his black haired friend run around the room, running himself dry. "Do you want to grab something to eat? Dinner has probably started already."

"Maybe...later," Al muttered sleepily and slumped to the floor, eyes closed as he began to snore. SS rolled his eyes and smiled.

"Can you do bedroom mode?" he asked the room.

" _Of course_ ," the chalk wrote and the room began to change. The walls turned a faded yellow and the floor was covered in a black fuzzy carpet. A comfy king size bed stood in the middle of the room. A fan on the ceiling spun lazily, sending a soft breeze throughout the room. Violins could be heard playing from somewhere. It was perfect.

"Thanks!" SS called to the room and dragged Al into the bed. Then he wrote a note and stuck it on the wall, explaining to Al where he had gone, and left the room.

He strolled down the hall and down the many flights of stairs to the library, in search of Rose. He pushed open the door and nodded at Madame Heydt who frowned in his direction. She was probably remembering the many overdue library books he'd had. SS walked past the many stacks of books, to their typical table in the back. Rose was staring at an open book, but her eyes weren't moving. She looked lost in thought, as if she'd just received some shocking news.

"Hey Rose. Are you okay?" SS called to her, his voice soft so as not to startle her. Rose shook her head, as if trying to shake of a thought, before her eyes focused on him.

"Yeah. Yeah, I'm fine," Rose responded, her voice dreamy.

"Is something wrong? You're acting like something's wrong," SS continued. Rose shook her head, more firmly this time.

"I'm fine," she repeated, voice clearer. "I'm really tired. I'm going to go back to my common room. I'll see you later." She stood to leave.

"Rose, if you ever want to tell me what's wrong, I'm here," SS blurted out. "Our friends too. They're here for you."

"That's nice," Rose muttered and walked out of the library. Her steps were light, her body swayed. She almost looked as if she was sleep walking. Sighing with worry, SS left the library as well, intent on grabbing some dinner from the Great Hall then retreating to his dorm room.

"SS!" someone yell as he closed the library's heavy doors. SS turned and saw Emily, his fellow Quidditch chaser, running towards him, her tan face pinched with worry.

"Emily. What's wrong? Did something happen to the team?" SS asked, feeling a wave a worry take him under.

"No. Healer Fallax told me to find you. Hope's in the Hospital Wing," she explained and dread made SS's shoulders slump. He spun on his heel and ran off towards that area of the castle.

"Thank you!" he called over his shoulder to Emily as he sprinted away.

* * *

"You're okay," Rose gasped when she ran into the Hospital wing. Hope was glowering on the bed closest to the door. SS was sitting on her left and Al was sitting on her right. He had woken up a little bit ago and found out where his friend was. It didn't take him very long to get to her. SS had been there for an hour, waiting for Hope to wake up, then trying to get her to explain what had happened. Emmet had just informed Rose of the location of Hope moments ago and she'd rushed to the Hospital Wing.

"Surprised to see you here at all," Hope muttered and reached over to the plate of cookies sitting on the bed. Al had brought them to cheer her up.

"Why wouldn't I come?" Rose wondered. Hope just shrugged and bit into a baked good.

"Hope, how did you get hurt?" Al asked her cautiously. She didn't answer.

"Healer Fallax told us that Moaning Myrtle was wailing until someone came and found you passed out in one of the bathroom stalls, your head bleeding onto the floor," SS exclaimed, growing frustrated. She hadn't told him anything.

"I went to the bathroom, talked with Myrtle, practiced a bit of magic and it backfired," Hope replied. She wasn't eager to share about her experience down below the school. If it meant what she thought, then she didn't want them to know.

"What kind of magic? Out of control magic or normal magic?" Rose demanded, leaning forward.

"A combination. I tried a fourth year spell and it didn't work out as planned," Hope explained.

"What spell?" Rose continued.

"I don't remember," Hope snapped. "I just busted my head open on a ceramic toilet."

"Sorry," Rose muttered and sank back into her chair.

"Uh, so, we're leaving for Christmas break tomorrow, and I was wondering if you, Hope, and SS would like to come to our family's party?" Al suggested. Hope smiled softly in gratitude.

"Maybe," she told him. "I'll talk to mother. Where is it this year?"

"My house," Rose put in, tone sharp.

"Maybe Libby, the house elf, can take me while Mum and Dad get ready for their gala," SS said to his friend. The black haired boy smiled.

"Then we can do our gift exchange then," he told them happily. No one else said anything but you could see the tension rippling through the air.


	13. Christmas Begins

Chapter Thirteen: Christmas Begins

The next day Rose, Al, and Hope all aced their astronomy test then hurried to finish packing. Together, the group rode back home on the Hogwarts Express. They played wizard chess and exploding snap, all while being perfectly polite. But there was an underlying tension like a thin sheet of ice.

When they arrived at the station, they all ran through the crowds to find their parents. Harry and Ron were waiting for their children while Draco and Astoria stood slightly apart from them. Valentina was hiding behind an archway, watching to group. The other Weasleys stood together, embracing their children, then ushered them out of the station.

Finally, Harry saw Al. He rushed forward and put his arms around his son. He had lost one boy this year and he feared more than anything that Al had not been coming home. But he was here. His boy had come home and was safe once more.

Rose nodded towards her father who placed an arm round her shoulders. Astoria stepped forward and embraced SS. She then pulled back, smoothed his hair, and straightened his red and gold tie. Draco watched from a safe distance.

Valentina then saw Hope and dashed forward, taking her daughter into her bony arms. Hope didn't respond. Her face was cool and guarded. Valentina, confused, pulled back and looked at her daughter, but Hope looked away.

"Daddy, would it be alright if our friends came to this year's party?" Rose asked Ron who grinned widely.

"Of course!" he cried out. "The more the merrier!"

"Can I go?" SS asked his mother with eagerness. Astoria laughed and stroked his head, not giving an answer.

"We should be going. Lots to do back at home," Draco told his son and clamped a steely hand on his son's shoulder. Then, without saying goodbye, he ushered his family out of the train station. Al stared after him, forlorn.

"We should go as well, Al. We still have a lot of packing to do and we have to go to Uncle Ron's place tonight," Harry told his son. Al nodded and waved goodbye to the rest of his friends as him and Harry left, Ron and Rose right on their heels. That just left a concerned Valentina and a chilly Hope.

"Hope, dearest, what's wrong?" Valentina asked as they left the station and headed to the hidden fireplace.

"Nothing," Hope replied and stepped into the stone fireplace. She didn't want to bring up the subject of her father yet. She wanted to give her mother some time to enjoy her being home.

* * *

"Why did we have to leave so soon?" SS asked his parents as they went into their home. After the war, Draco had purchased a small cottage alone on the countryside. It had a modern kitchen and dining room, a cozy living room, and five bedrooms all with a personal bath. Libby, their house elf, had her room down in the basement where the laundry room and the cleaning supplies were located.

"Son, perhaps you shouldn't be socializing with Albus Potter anymore," Draco recommended as he took off his cloak. SS flinched, shocked. He thought his father had approved of his friendship with Al.

"Why?" SS demanded, anger filling him up. Astoria, seeing this, placed a hand on his arm.

"Honey, all your father is saying is that Albus may not be a good influence," Astoria explained softly, trying to calm the storm brewing in her son's gray eyes that were identical to his father's.

"What? Al's the nicest person I know! Why would he be a bad influence," SS insisted.

"His older brother ran away," Draco barked, angry at being defied and questioned. "We don't want you getting any ideas! Do you know how many kids have run away this year?"

"Al would never encourage me to run away!" SS cried out. "James is an idiot who got humiliated. Al is nothing like him."

"He's still a Potter. And I am your father so I order you to keep your distant from Albus Potter or I will bring you right back here and I'll home school you!" Draco declared and rushed up stairs. SS growled and punched the wall, reveling in the pain racing up his knuckles.

"All anyone does is see his last name. Potter. Everyone thinks they're all the same. But they're not! Al's different!" SS ranted. Astoria sighed and tried to reach out to him but he brushed her off. "The same thing happens to us. Why can't Dad understand, maybe even sympathize? We have the same problems!"

"He's worried about you. He doesn't want you to disappear as well," Astoria explained. Watching her son go through the same thing that her husband had gone through was horrible. She wished they could connect but they were just too much alike for that to happen. "If you would like, I can take you to visit your friends over break. I know you all like to do a gift exchange."

"Al and Rose invited Hope and I to their family's party. It's at Rose's house on Christmas Eve," SS admitted.

"I'll take you. And don't worry. Your father will come around," Astoria assured SS.

* * *

"Welcome to our humble home," Hugo called out to his Uncle Bill and Aunt Fleur as they ushered their children up the grassy slope that led to Hugo's family's house. It was a three-story building with five chimneys sticking out of the roof and a chicken coop sitting in the yard, full of roosters.

"Thank you, Hugo," Fleur laughed in her pretty French accent a she pinched his cheek. Louis laughed as Hugo batted her away. The fourteen-year-old boy had become lost, ever since his favorite cousin had run away. But Freddy was waiting inside to cheer him up.

"Victorie!" Teddy cried and ran out of the chicken coop, scooping her up into his arms. She had been doing much better. Her insomnia was almost gone and her nightmares had receded with the help of anti-dream potions.

"Is Roxy here yet?" Dominique asked Hugo with a smile. She handed him a piece of chocolate and winked at him, her short spiky red hair sparkling in the fading December sunlight. She was the only one of her siblings to inherit her father's auburn locks.

"Yeah. She's out back practicing her flying," Hugo responded and shoved the chocolate into his pocket, eager to bite into it when he was alone. Dominique ruffled his hair and ran to the back of the house. Just then, a bright light glowed at the bottom of hill and the Potter family appeared.

"Hugo!" Lily screamed and raced up the hill, tripping over her feet, giggling with glee. Hugo hopped off the front stoop and raced to his favorite cousin. Hermione came out of the door, an apron covering her faded green dress, followed her husband to greet the Potter's. She embraced Ginny and Harry, knowing they were suffering. Al dragged his trunk up the hill when it suddenly began to float. Rose was smiling at him from the top of the hill, her wand raised.

"How are your parents?" Rose whispered to him when he reached her front door.

"Depressed. Mum keeps crying. She never cries," Al replied and cast a worried glance towards his family. Lily's laughter sounded forced and Ginny was dabbing her eyes as Harry tried to comfort her. "I think they're going to ask me about him soon. They know I know something."

"We can't tell them the truth. It's too dangerous," Rose advised him. Al nodded miserably.

"I know. I won't tell them more than they need to know," Al muttered. Rose frowned slightly and looped her arm through his.

"Come on! You get to sleep in Hugo's room with all of the boys!" Rose declared and marched him into her house, trying to lift his spirits.

* * *

Hope slowly unpacked her trunk, wanting to stall as long as possible. It was strange. On the train ride she couldn't wait to get home and confront her mother. But now she was unsure. Rose had once told her that ignorance was bliss. Was Hope ready to hear the truth? Would it help her or destroy her?

Valentina poured herself a glass of butterbeer and stared out of the windows of her safe house. After the attack last fall, Valentina had moved all of her personal things to the safe house. It was a small, one floor cottage, surrounded by woods, with a red door and two small bedrooms right next to each other. The tiny kitchen ran into the dining room and the living room only had two chairs in front of an old fireplace. The home hadn't been used in years. Valenina was fearful that Asphodel would be back for her daughter. Although Hope clearly didn't like it here, it was for her safety.

Worry began to fester inside Valentina's heart. Ever since Hope had gotten home, she had seemed different. Colder. Not herself. Valentina worried that she was wrong in letting Hope go back to Hogwarts, even though she had done so very unwillingly.

"Mother?" Hope called as she came out of her new, extremely tiny, bedroom. Valentina turned and smiled, the wrinkles in her tan skin stretching.

"Yes darling?" Valentina answered and walked towards her daughter who glanced away.

"I... I," Hope stuttered. She wanted the truth but looking at the face of her mother, the weathered skin, the thin graying hair, the sorrow filled blue eyes, Hope couldn't do it. She couldn't crush her mother yet. She knew if she brought up her father then her mother would become depressed and distraught. Hope couldn't do that to her. Yet. "I was wondering if I could go to Rose's family's Christmas party."

"Oh, well," Valentina hesitated. Her daughter was hiding something. But Valentina didn't want to pry. Her daughter's anger was deadly and dangerous so she let the matter lay. "Of course. I can accompany you and I'll even by you a new dress for the occasion."

"Thank you," Hope replied, stunned. She hadn't expected her mother to agree so easily. "I'm going to take a nap. I'm really tired."

"Of course," Valentina sighed. Hope smiled and returned to her room. Valentina sighed and ran her finger along the wall. Something was wrong. But she didn't want to further upset her daughter. Oh, the woes of being a mother.

* * *

Rose's house was very cramped over Christmas. Harry, Ginny, Hermione, and Ron all slept in the master bedroom. Fleur, Bill, Charlie, George, and Angelina slept in the living room while Percy, Aubrey, and their daughters, Molly and Lucy, slept in the guest room. Rose had dragged cots into her room so she could share it with Victorie, Dominique, Roxy, and Lily. Hugo was ecstatic to be sharing his room with Teddy, Louis, Al, and Freddy. While preparing for the holiday they tripped over each other and got on each other's nerves constantly. But that was how Christmas always was for her family.

Rose pulled Al away from the festivities for a just a moment to tell him what she had learned about their ancestors. He took it surprisingly well. He said it made sense and asked if that was why his magic was so chaotic. Rose told him that that was her hypothesis. So Al accepted who he was, a Hufflepuff to the core, and became even jollier as Christmas drew nearer.

* * *

Christmas Eve had finally arrived. Valentina had purchased her daughter a lovely green dress that made her eyes look like kaleidoscopes. But Hope was fraught with worry. She knew the time had come to get her answers. So, that morning, she got dressed early and went outside where she found her mother sitting in the snow, lost in thought.

"Mother," Hope called, trying to feel strong. But that began to crumble when she saw her mother's smiling face as she turned.

"Hope! Why are you up so early?" Valentina asked cheerfully. "Come and watch the sunrise with me."

"Mother, I want to ask you something. It's about my father," Hope forced out, the words sounding like knives. Valentina's smile fell and misery returned to her blue eyes.

"I already told you about him," she replied with a curt voice. Her limbs were still.

"I don't think you told me the truth," Hope protested. "I think I found out who he is."

"Did you?" Valentina mused.

"Should my last name actually be Riddle instead of Fawley?" Hope demanded, her voice rising. Valentina froze for a few moments before she spun around sharply, dragged Hope inside, and locked the door.

"What in Merlin's name are you talking about?" Valentina hissed, her voice worried and fearful, her eyes darting to the open windows, searching for eavesdroppers.

"You know exactly what I'm talking about," Hope barked back. Now that she had started, all her emotions were coming into sharper focus. She could tell that her mother was evading the question. She knew she was right. Anger ran through Hope, anger at her mother for never telling her the truth, for keeping her hidden, for _lying_ to her. "The Dark Lord is my father."

"Why on earth would you think that?" Valentina laughed, but it sounded false. Her fear was almost touchable.

"I can speak parseltounge. I opened the Chamber of Secrets. I don't know who my father is but I'm almost certain that he was my father," Hope explained, almost yelling now. Valentina shushed her quickly. "Is that why you hid me away? So no one would find out that you bore his daughter?"

"No," Valentina sobbed. She slumped to the ground, tears falling from her eyes. "I was praying you would never find out."

"Well, I did. So spill," Hope growled, inching towards her mother. Valentina cried into her hands for a few more moments before she spoke again.

"I was one of his favorite attendants, always able to calm his nerves. When I was eighteen, a year before we attacked Hogwarts, the Dark Lord said he had a job for me," Valentina started. "He gave me a cauldron, big enough to fit a small child, with a tiny nugget of flesh inside in the shape of a tiny baby. The thing was suspended in a clear potion and it was clearly alive. The Dark Lord told me to take care of it, to raise it."

"What was it?" Hope wondered. Valentina's eyes shone with tears when she looked at her daughter.

"You."


	14. Truth

Chapter Fourteen: Truth

"What?" Hope roared, not understanding. "Explain!"

"The Dark Lord had found a spell that allowed him to remove a part of his DNA, place it in a dangerous and very complex potion, and grow child," Valentina admitted. "He told me that if he failed then I was to groom his child to fill in his shoes and finish the job. But after the Battle of Hogwarts, I vowed to raise his child to be good and loving. I hid myself away in the countryside and waited for the baby to finish growing. Since it was an unnatural birth, the process took nine years."

"That was me," Hope gaped. Valentina began to cry again.

"I tried so hard to make you different but you look just like him. I tried to teach you good. I figured if I could keep you away from the world then you would keep your innocence but I was wrong," Valentina sobbed.

"You always say that I'm just like him," Hope muttered, stunned. Her brain couldn't handle this. Her mind seemed to be rejecting the facts that were all laid out in front of her.

"In some ways, yes, you are. But in others, you are truly yourself," Valentina assured her.

"You named me Hope because you hoped I wouldn't be like him," Hope continued.

"I still have those hopes," Valentina insisted. "I love you so much."

"You're not my mother," Hope finished. Valentina flinched, as if the thought deeply pained her.

"No, I'm not. But I've watched you grow for years. I've loved you since the very beginning. You're my child," Valentina cried out as she reached for her daughter. But Hope pulled away.

"I…I need a minute," she muttered and ran outside.

The cold air stung her skin and froze her tears. It was all true. Every bit of it. She was Voldemort's daughter. No one else's. She was 100% Dark Lord. She had nothing to offset those genetics. It was a miracle she hadn't turned to darkness yet. What was stopping her?

Hope reached under her dress and pulled out her two necklaces. One, a silver chain with a silver snake. The other, a leather cord wrapped around a pale piece of green stained wood. A fragment from her father's wand. Something he had wanted her to have. A reminder to finish what he had started.

Hope's entire life was a lie. She couldn't even begin to think again. Kneeling in the snow, she cried and sobbed. All those years when she'd been forced to live alone with no one but her mother. She was being protected, hidden. For whose safety, hers or the worlds, she didn't know.

She now knew that ignorance was bliss. She shouldn't have been so curious. Her mother was wise. Why hadn't Hope listened to her and let the subject lay? Even though she had suspected this, the certainty that this was fact nearly crushed her. She was the only child of Voldemort.

Hope's powerful magic became clear. Of course the daughter of Voldemort would have amazing abilities. She just hoped they would never be used for the purposes of her father wanted them to be used for.

Numb, Hope returned to her room. Valentina, her no longer mother, was looked into her own room, crying to her pillow. Hope locked her own door and wrote a letter to Rose, explaining how she wouldn't be able to attend her party due to personal issues. She couldn't tell her the truth. She may never be able to. Would her friends even look at her the same way once they knew she wasn't even completely real? She had been born out of a cauldron. She was unnatural, a freak. She shouldn't exist.

Doubts and fears swelled inside her heart as she lay on her bed, staring up at the water-damaged ceiling, contemplating her new identity. What would happen now?

Hope's eyes widened as she realized yet another thing. Voldemort had been a descendant of Salazar Slytherin. And if he was then so was she because she was _just_ like him. That explained why Albany called her 'little snake' and wanted her dead. Because she was the descendant of her old lover, her greatest enemy.

Nauseous swelled in Hope's stomach and she groaned, turning over onto her side. Would she be able to return to Hogwarts with this knowledge? Now knowing who she was and what she could do, would she ever be able to face her friends? What if she killed someone, now that she knew she could? The temptation to unlock her father's abilities would always be there, never going away. Would she be able to resist it? Who would she be now that she knew her past?

* * *

"Is everyone here?" Hermione asked Rose who was standing on the front step, waiting for all the guests. Inside the house, the Christmas party was in full swing. Everyone was oohing over Cho Chang's ultrasounds and jealously staring at the diamond on Padma Patil's finger. Lorcan and Lysander, Luna's sons, were trying to sneak gingerbread men, but Percy's daughter, Molly, kept shooing them away.

"Not yet. SS isn't here," Rose admitted and tried to hid her disappointment. "And Hope can't come. She's got something else to do."

"Well, I'm sure the party will still be fun," Hermione assured her daughter, stroking the frizzy locks she had given her. "Hannah brought her pound cake. I know how much you like that."

"Thanks," Rose mumbled and craned her neck, searching for her friend. She knew that SS's family party was fancy and uptight, which didn't suit him at all. Rose was hoping to share her world with him, showing just how great her family was.

"Is he still not here?" Al sighed as he walked out of the door. His robes were a lovely green to match his eyes, with red ribbon around the collar and cuffs. The black badger pin with yellow diamonds that Hope had gotten him last year held them together.

"No," Rose replied, shaking her head miserably.

"Maybe he got sick," Hermione suggested and turned back to the party when she heard a loud crash. "Do try and not wait for too long? It's very cold outside and everyone will want to see you."

"Yes mother," Rose muttered and slumped against the doorframe.

"You know, maybe his parents didn't want to bring him. This is a party for the old members of Dumbledore's Army, after all," Al offered. Rose clenched her jaw for a moment before she sighed and nodded.

"I guess you're right," she admitted and turned back to the party. Suddenly, a bright light began to glow at the base of the hill and SS and his mother, Astoria, appeared. Together, the climbed up the hill.

"I hope we are not too late. I couldn't decide if I should bring cookies or pie," Astoria giggled as she approached Rose and Al. She was a regal woman with brown hair that was piled into a bun with pale skin that shone with makeup. She wore a long plain green skirt with a black poncho and black heels. Pearls sparkled in her earlobes and around her neck. Her hands carried a silver tray containing a pecan pie surrounded by sugar cookies. Apparently she had decided that more was merrier.

"Hey," SS greeted his friends, his gray eyes pinned to the snow covered ground. He tried not to think about the real reason they were so late. The fight that had erupted between him and his father, his mother trying to calm him, his father yelling at her, hating that she would defy him. The hushed conversation they had in their bedroom as SS listened through the key hole. The rushed preparation for the party. SS had decided to wear the red robes he had gotten for his family's party last year. The lion pin sparkled from the recent polishing his mother had given it. Every hair was in place, heavy under the many products his mother had piled into it. During their departure, his father had left the house. He was going to visit his parents.

"I'm so glad you could come," Rose told him with a smile. Al embraced his friend and shook Astoria's hand. She regarded the little Hufflepuff with narrowed eyes, trying to discern if her son should be hanging around him.

"Thanks," SS muttered and looked up. What he saw nearly took his breath away. Rose was in a shimmering green dress with gold lace around the hem of her skirt, on the neckline, and the waist. The dress was strapless and sparkly. Her red hair was pulled back into a thick braid with a golden braided headband sparkling in her hair. A light sheen of makeup brought her out her natural beauty and made people understand why her name was Rose. "Uh, wow Rose. You...you look amazing."

"Oh, thanks SS," Rose giggled lightly, her cheeks pink.

"Come on in!" Al cried out and dragged his friend inside. Astoria regarded the guests with a sharp eye and tried to fade into the background.

"Diner time!" Fleur called out from the kitchen. Everyone herded into the tiny area. Due to the amount of people, the magically enhanced table stretched from the entryway to the living room.

"Oh, Cho's husband makes best roast," Al told his friend as they sat at the section of the table where all the kids sat.

"Hey, SS, nice to see you here. Did you bring us all presents?" Roxy laughed when she spotted her Quidditch teammate. Louis patted his shoulder and Freddy offered a wave. They were becoming quite close.

"Of course I did," SS replied and pulled out tiny wrapped gifts. A startled gasp erupted from Roxy while the rest of the table burst out into laughter. Al's cousins reached forward and took the tiny gifts, eagerly unwrapping them.

"Cool!" Lily and Hugo cried out as they held their bundle of fireworks from Weasley Wizard Wheezes.

"Thanks man," Louis laughed, clutching a vial of love potion. Ever since SS had overheard Louis talking about how hot Emily Ashley was, he made fun of him every time he saw Louis.

"You didn't have to do that," Al assured his friend. SS just shrugged as he spooned some carrots onto his plate.

"I know. But Mother always says that the best way to get on someone's good side is by buying them things," SS replied in a whisper so the rest of the table didn't hear. "And I like buying people things. I have too much money."

Diner was a low key affair, with much laughter and caroling as the men got a little loopy with the eggnog. The kids soon broke off to hang out with each other. Rose dragged her two friends up to her room. The room had pale gray walls with a plush white carpet. Rose's loft bed was made of redwood and had blue messy blankets covering the mattress. A bookshelf dominated the wall underneath the bed. Her rocking chair had been pushed into a corner to make room for Lily's cot and trunk. Victore's makeup collection was sprawled across Rose's vanity that was also redwood. Dominque's dirty clothes littered the floor and Roxy's broom rested in a corner. Rose seated herself on a beanbag that was placed in the middle of the room. Al and SS grabbed some plush pillows from her bed and lounged on them.

"Are we going to do our gift exchange now?" SS wondered. Al nodded and pulled out his wrapped packages. He handed the blue one to Rose and the red one to SS. SS tore into the gift with relish but Rose took her time.

"Thanks!" Rose cried out when she saw the gift. It was a book entitled _Interesting Spells and Charms for Practical Use_. "I've wanted to read this for so long!"

"But I do think that I got the better gift," SS bragged and showed off his giant bag filled with homemade cauldron cakes. "Thanks bud!" Al turned red and became very interested in one of Roxy's socks.

"Well, here are mine," Rose declared and held out her books. Since she hadn't exchanged gifts with then last year, she wanted these gifts to be great.

Inside SS's package was a pair of chaser goggles. He giggled with delight and strapped them to his head. With his gray eyes bugging, his blond hair messed up, and his smile so wide, he looked hilarious. Al's gift was a cook book for beginners. Ever since he started visiting the Hogwarts kitchen, Al had developed an interest in backing.

"Thanks Rose," Al told her, smiling softly. SS nodded in agreement, bobbing like a bobble head.

"I guess that leaves me," SS said and held out his wrapped presents. Al and Rose both took their time in unwrapping the paper. "Would you two hurry up!"

"Sorry," Rose laughed and sped up her process. Inside the black box was pair of bronze earrings with sapphires. "These are beautiful."

"Yeah, thanks," Al added and pulled the yellow and black scarf he had received around his neck.

"Aw, don't mention it," SS replied, smiling. But soon the grin fell. "I wish Hope could be here."

"Somethings wrong," Rose sighed and slumped into her beanbag. "She didn't specify. She always gives us all the information. 'Personal reasons' is not a complete excuse."

"Do you think…?" Al whispered, not finishing his thought. But he didn't need to.

"No. Albany's busy elsewhere. I don't think it has something to do with her," Rose responded and Al breathed a sigh of relief. "All I know is she's going to have some explaining to do when we get back to school.

* * *

Al, Rose, and SS sat in a compartment on the Hogwarts Express, waiting. The train was about to leave and Hope still wasn't there. Rose drummed her fingers on the wall while SS stared out the window. Al was pacing the compartment, nearly wearing a hole in the carpet.

"Do you think something's happened?" he asked Rose, his voice filled with worry.

"No," Rose replied, but she sounded unsure. SS suddenly jumped and waved frantically.

"I see her! She's here!" he cried out, relived. Hope was running across the platform with Valentina on her heels. Hope threw her trunk into the luggage car. Valentina hugged her one last time before she boarded the train. But something seemed wrong to SS. Hope was stiff. She didn't return the hug. Instead, she pulled away and climbed onto the train, not looking back once.

"Hope!" Al called out to her. She smiled, but it didn't reach her eyes. She walked over and sank into their compartment, sitting next to Rose, across from Al.

"Hi," Hope sighed and looked at her fiddling hands.

"How was your Christmas?" Al inquired, happy to have his friend back. But then he sensed something. Hope was distraught, her mind in turmoil. "Hope, are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fine," she answered and didn't meet Al's eyes. He pressed his lips together in a small frown before he brought out a tin of cookies he had made.

"Do you want a cookie? I made them myself," Al offered. Hope reached forward and took one, eating it slowly so she didn't have to talk. The train began to move, headed back to school.

"So, why couldn't you come to the party?" Rose asked her friend.

"I wasn't feeling well. Too many pieces of Mum's fudge, I guess. I do have your gifts, though," Hope explained and pulled out three shiny packages. She was dodging questions, lying. Hope wasn't ready to tell her friends the truth she had no idea how they would react.

"Thanks," SS exclaimed as pulled out the chaser gloves Hope had given him. They had a golden lion embroider on the palm, adding a personal touch.

"Yeah Hope, these are great," Al added and pulled on the yellow and black knit cap. His dark hair became ruffle and messy but Al just smiled.

"Thank you," Rose muttered as she pulled out a book on proper broom care. She knew what Hope was doing. She knew that something was wrong. But if Hope wouldn't talk then Rose couldn't do anything.


	15. Twyla's Leap

Chapter Fifteen: Twyla's Leap

January passed in a haze of snow and sleet. The teachers assigned so much homework that the group nearly forgot about Albany. But they remembered her every time another seat became vacant in their classrooms.

Hope continued to be chilly and closed off, not speaking much of what had happened over Christmas break. Rose decided to drop the issue and threw herself into finding out all she could from her spies. Unfortunately, information seemed to have dried up and, as a result, tension in the group was running high.

* * *

"We need to do something. We aren't learning anything new and we need to figure out what Albany is going to do. She's been recruiting people for a semester. She has a plan and we need to find out what it is," Rose told her friends in February as they all sat around the table at the library.

"What do you suggest?" Al replied.

"Ferna and Twyla are doing their best!" SS protested, ignoring Al.

"I'm aware of that but they aren't learning anything new. No one trusts them, except for Luff, and that's only because he has a crush on Ferna," Rose groaned.

"What do you suggest?" Al repeated, trying to gain attention.

"Do you want them to insult us in public? Will that gain the enemies trust?" SS declared, standing up in his anger. He knew Ferna was risking the wrath of Albany and he was fearful for her safety. Rose was blaming the lack of information on her inability to gain the confidence of the others, all because Ferna was the first person who was nice to him in Gryffindor.

"SS, would you relax. I'm not going to have your _girlfriend_ turn against you," Rose sneered, lips curled.

"She's not my girlfriend," SS snapped and Rose laughed shortly.

"Perhaps we should talk to Ferna and Twyla. Their opinions should matter," Al suggested, trying to be heard. Rose snapped her head to him, expression fierce.

"We can do that. They may have new information," Rose agreed and looked towards Hope. Worry began to fill her gut when she looked at her friend. Hope had bags under her eyes and had grown so thin, she looked like a stick figure.

Hope didn't tell her friends that she had been too depressed to eat, sustaining herself on the sweets that Al shared with her. She had been kept up all night with nightmares about Voldemort, rushing towards her and telling her she was him. His cold white hands would wrap around her wrist and try to drag her towards him. He would hold up his wand and brand her with the dark mark. Her friends would run in fear, screaming. Hope always awoke in a cold sweat of fear.

"Hope, could you go find Twyla?" Rose asked her friend in a soft voice, trying to be comforting. She could see she was hurting but Hope was sealed tighter than a clam. The best thing Rose could do was just be there.

"Uh, yeah, sure," Hope mumbled and stood, off to find her Slytherin friend.

"Do you know what's bothering her?" Al whispered, worry tainting his voice. Rose shook her head, sighed, and turned to SS.

"Can you find Ferna?" she inquired. SS nodded and left the library, still a little angry. Rose turned to Al. "What are we going to do?"

"We're going to do our best. We'll do what is needed and we'll stick together because that's what needed," Al assured her and gave her a hug. Rose sank into the embrace for a moment. Then she saw SS and Hope returning with their spies, and she pulled away.

"What's going on?" Ferna asked as she took a seat next to SS. Twyla slumped in her chair next to Hope who was staring into space again.

"Do you have any new information?" Rose demanded. Twyla groaned in annoyance while Ferna shook her head.

"All Luff is talking about is how badly he wishes he could leave and how much glory he'll get when he completes his mission. I can't get anything new out of him," Ferna sighed. Rose pursed her lips and glared at Ferna for a moment before she turned to Twyla.

"What about you?" Rose inquired.

"She just keeps asking me to join her. I'm making her think I'm on the fence," Twyla muttered.

"What do mean? How is Albany communicating to you?" Al wondered.

"Dreams," Twyla replied shortly, looking up at the ceiling. Her dark hands were pressed firmly against the wooden table.

"I'm still confused," Al admitted. Twyla rolled her eyes.

"Albany is speaking to students in their dreams. If you show potential, a small desire to join her, then she tries to persuade you, night after night. She only reveals the location of the school if your committed. I've told her I'm on the fence," Twyla explained.

"That's some serious magic, being able to fool Albany. Very impressive," Rose replied. "The problem is we need more information if we're going to stop her."

"What can we do? Why don't you take what you know to the Ministry and let them handle it?" Ferna complained as she played with a quill she had found on the floor. Rose, SS, and Al exchanged uneasy glances. Hope wasn't listening. She was too distracted by her thoughts.

"I can tell you guys aren't telling us something," Twyla began.

"No-" Al interrupted.

"And I respect you for that," Twyla continued, ignoring Al. "I know that this is important to you and that you probably _can't_ go to the Ministry for help. So, I'm ready to do what is necessary."

"Like what?" SS wondered. Twyla took a deep breath, as if preparing to jump off a cliff.

"Like accepting Albany's offer and going to her school," Twyla said. Everyone gasped and jumped in shock. Their gasps drew Hope's attention.

"Twyla, you can't!" Rose protested.

"I can. We can't learn anything else from where we are. You need someone inside, someone who can play evil and let you know what's going on," Twyla insisted.

"Like Severus Snape," Al muttered, remembering all the stories his father had told him about the amazingly brave Slytherin. "I think we should let her do what she needs to do. Twyla knows the risks."

"Are you sure?" Hope asked her friend, holding her hand, as she realized what Twyla was offering to do.

"Yes, I'm sure. I'll tell Albany tonight. I'll be gone by sunrise," Twyla responded and stood up.

"How will we communicate with you?" SS pointed out. Rose sighed and pulled out a golden galleon from her bag.

"These," Rose suggested. "My mother kept hers and father's coins from the D.A. I sensed something like this might need to happen so I took them. We'll have a secret code and if Twyla needs to tell us something she changes the serial code on the coin. Mine will change to match and I'll see the message. Albany will never know."

"Thank you," Twyla told her and placed the coin in her pocket. She turned to leave.

"Good luck," Al called after her.

"Luck won't help me," Twyla replied and left. Although this mission was vital to her friends, there was another reason she was doing this. She wanted to see her friend, Rachel, again. She wanted to try and convince her to come back. But she didn't want to tell the others and have them shoot down her fragile hope.

* * *

When Hope woke up the next day, leaving her world of nightmares behind, the first thing she did was glance over at Twyla's bed. Empty. The sheets were smooth, the pillow fluffed. It looked cold and uninviting, not slept in. Twyla's trunk was gone and when Hope got to Care of Magical Creatures she heard Hagrid complain that his favorite Hippogriff was missing. Twyla was gone. She had thrown herself to the wolves to help Hope and her friends spy on Albany.

* * *

 **Please review!**


	16. Kidnapping and Distress

Chapter Sixteen: Kidnapping and Distress

Months passed. Twyla sent messages every two weeks, talking about Asphodel was the leader and their teacher. She said that she had seen James and Mackenzie and Rachel. All the missing were there.

Twyla told them how they slept in underground rooms called dens. How the school was the ruins of a manor, long forgotten. She explained that Albany only appeared in her dreams, so much more vividly now.

Twyla had asked Rachel where Albany was. Rachel let her know that Albany couldn't appear in the daylight, only in dreams. She was too important to talk to the students directly.

Hope grew worried for her friend and her nightmares got worse. Her grades fell and soon she looked like a lost soul wondering the halls. Her only comfort was hanging out with her friends. When she was nervous and shaky, though, and didn't want them to see her, she went back to the girls' bathroom where Myrtle resided. She was surprisingly nice company and her and Hope got along swimmingly. Myrtle never mentioned the Chamber of Secrets and Hope never mentioned what Myrtle had done for her when she flew out of the pipe. Hope was very grateful for her.

Meanwhile, Rose was obsessed with all she was learning, taking notes and drawing connections constantly. Al tried to get his friend's attention, trying to keep their spirits up, but they ignored him.

SS trained with the Quidditch team. Roxy led them to another win and Gryffindor won the Quidditch Cup!

But there was still a blanket of misery over the whole castle. By the month of May, almost a quarter of the students had run away. Parents were growing concerned and pulled their kids out of school in fear that Hogwarts was corrupting them. But even that didn't stop the students from running away. There were so many empty seats in the classrooms that it was impossible to forget about the traitors.

* * *

Hope was sitting on the marble tiles of Myrtle's bathroom, writing her final essay for Astronomy. Myrtle floated high above, reciting random bits of gossip she had overheard.

"And Cindy Price _hates_ Carissa Loser's new hat but she told she that she liked it. Then I set the record straight. Oh, you should have heard them bicker! It was a total cat fight!" Myrtle cackled. Hope laughed softly and finished her essay, satisfied. Working in here while Myrtle gossiped was very relaxing. Hope found that she did her best work in here since no one came. Myrtle often complained over the lack of visitors but Hope liked it.

She slipped her essay and textbook back into her bag and laid down on the cool tile. Myrtle smiled down at her and Hope stuck out her tongue in reply.

Suddenly they heard a muffled scream. Instinct drove Hope into one of the stalls and Myrtle into her toilet. Hope clambered onto the toilet in her stall as the door of the bathroom was thrown open. She leaned forward, peaking out the crack yet careful not to be seen.

"Let me go!" a muffled female voice cried out. A boy walked farther into the bathroom and Hope was able to see him. Black hair, Gryffindor robes, and almond shaped eyes. Heng Kim.

"Cost is clear," Kim called over his shoulder. Tristan Luff walked forward, his floppy hair dangling into his eyes, his wand raised.

"Come on! We don't have all day," Luff complained and dragged a protesting body into Hope's view. She had to bit her tongue to stop herself from screaming aloud. The girl Luff was dragging was Ferna. She had a cuts on her arms and face. Her copper hair was a mess and her robes were in tatters. Worst of all, glowing on the palm that SS had shook was a fiery red lion. "I should've known you were spying for the lion. You never were charmed by my stunning good looks."

"I'm not a spy!" Ferna protested. Luff yanked her hair, pulling her to the ground. Ferna cried out in pain, wincing as her elbows were slammed into tile.

"Do you think we're idiots? You have the mark of Gryffindor of your palm!" Kim exclaimed.

"I don't even know what you're talking about," Ferna insisted from the floor. Luff and Kim just rolled their eyes and pulled her to the sinks.

"You're in luck. You'll get to be our pet's first meal," Kim hissed and pointed his wand at the last sink in the bathroom. Hope knew that that was the entrance to the Chamber of Secrets but she saw no way that they could know that.

Kim's wand began to glow green. A beam of light hit the snake on the tap and a hissing sound emitted from the small piece of wood. Hope suddenly realized what it was. It was her voice, recorded when she opened the chamber. Kim must have followed her in, recorded her voice with magic, and then shoved her down the pipe.

The sink sank out of view and the gaping pipe was revealed. Ferna whimpered softly as she realized what was going on.

"Ladies first," Luff cackled and threw her against the pipe. Ferna's shins hit the edge and instantly started to bleed. Kim gave her a good shove and Ferna went tumbling down, head first, screaming all the way. Luff laughed and jumped in after her. Finally, Kim climbed into the pipe and planted his feet, halting his descent. He waved his wand and the sink began to rise again. Then he turned and fell down the pipe.

"That was interesting," Myrtle remarked after a moment of silence. Hope unlocked the stall door and stepped into the bathroom area. Myrtle was floating near the last sink, a glum expression on her face.

"Myrtle, have Luff and Kim been coming here often?" Hope wondered, voice steely calm.

"I think so. They came here in September and asked how to get into the Chamber of Secrets. After you came and got in, they kept coming every week, not even saying hello," Myrtle sighed.

"And you didn't tell me?" Hope demanded. Myrtle shrugged.

"I didn't think it was important," she admitted. Hope groaned and ran her long fingers through her black hair. This was the thing about Myrtle. Unless it involved her directly or was super hilarious or embarrassing for others, she didn't think it was important.

"I'm going after her," Hope declared and walked towards the sink. She was the only one who could open the Chamber of Secrets. She would save Ferna and stop Luff and Kim from doing whatever they were doing.

Suddenly the door of the bathroom flew off its hinges. Hope and Myrtle screeched and ducked, although since Myrtle was a ghost she didn't need to. SS stormed in, wand raised, red magic rippling off of him. Al and Rose followed, climbing over the rubble from the door.

"Merlin, now we're going to get into trouble," Al muttered.

"SS, honestly, I'm sure she's fine," Rose assured the blond. The group froze when they saw Hope, covered in white dust. She stood up off the tiles and hurriedly brushed herself off.

"What are you guys doing here?" she asked her friends.

"We could ask you the same question," Rose replied. SS strode forward and grasped Hope's shoulders.

"Have you seen Ferna? I think she's in danger," SS demanded, his voice rough with worry. Hope pressed her lips together, not sure she wanted to answer. Ferna was in danger but telling her friends that would lead to questions. Questions that would no doubt find out about her abilities and her father.

"You're being paranoid. The last time I saw her was just five minutes ago. She was talking with Luff and Kim, trying to get us new information. Doing her _job_ ," Rose insisted.

"If she's in trouble because of me..." SS grumbled. He shook his head and took a step back.

"I...I saw her," Hope forced out. The entire group turned to her and Hope nearly stopped. But she made herself continue. SS was extremely worried and Hope could help. She had to think about Ferna and the greater good. Those boys were up to something Hope had the ability to stop them. She just needed to be brave enough to act. "Luff and Kim kidnapped her and took her into the Chamber of Secrets. I watched from a bathroom stall."

"No," SS moaned, his head in hands. Al had turned pale and Rose was biting her lip.

"We have to go after her," Al insisted. "How do we get into the Chamber of Secrets?"

"I...I can open it," Hope admitted. She could see Rose's brain working overtime, trying to figure out what was going on. Before Hope could lose her nerve she walked over the farthest sink. She stared at the little snake and focused. " _Open_." The sink began to descend.

"That's parseltongue," Al gasped. Hope looked at the floor tiles. "How did you...?"

"You're father. You know who he was," Rose realized. Hope swallowed hard and nodded.

"He was a descendent of Salazar Slytherin. So am I," Hope explained, voice no louder than a whisper.

"I understand," Rose told her and walked forward. She wrapped her long arms around her shaking friend who finally let it out and began to cry softly.

"I don't understand," Al muttered. SS, meanwhile, was rushing to the pipe.

"I'll explain everything later," Hope promised and pulled away from Rose, wiping her tears away. "But first we have to save Ferna."

"We will. Oh!" Rose gasped and pulled a golden galleon out of her pocket, the one who had a twin in Twyla's possession. Rose stared at the coin for a moment before she paled.

"What? What's wrong?" Al asked his cousin who was slowly putting the coin back in her pocket.

"Twyla just sent me a message," Rose whispered. Her hands were shaking. Hope placed a hand on her friend's shoulder.

"What did it say?" Hope asked.

"S.O.S," Rose uttered and Hope sucked in a breath.

"We can't save them both. Twyla is better at talking her way out of things. She'll be fine," SS declared, climbing into the pipe.

"We can't just abandon her. She's my friend and is risking her life for us," Hope protested. A scream suddenly came from the pipe. High pitched. Ferna. SS looked like he was fighting with himself.

"We can't save them both. We don't even know where the school is," SS insisted.

"Twyla told me last month where it was. I didn't tell anyone because I didn't you guys to do anything rash. We didn't have the power to storm her mansion," Rose admitted.

"I have an idea," Al blurted out. Everyone, including Myrtle, who had been watching this conversation from the ceiling, turned to look at Al. "Two of us go save Ferna and two of us go save Twyla."

"Who goes where?" Hope demanded.

"You and me should go save Ferna," SS told Hope. "You can speak parseltonuge. And if this is Luff and Kim we're dealing with, then I know their weaknesses."

"But what about Twyla?" Hope replied.

"Rose and I will go. We'll save her," Al promised. "But we need to get moving."

"Alright. Good luck," Hope said and hugged Rose and Al, knowing that this may be the last moment they saw each other. "Come back, okay?"

"Okay," Al answered and hugged SS who was starting to get impatient. He was tired of strategy. He needed to move and go save his friend who he had put in danger.

Rose and Al waved one last time then ran out of the bathroom. Hope looked at SS who nodded grimly and let himself slide down the pipe. Hope waited for thirty seconds before she jumped in after him, heading below the school to the place where her nightmares took place.

* * *

Rose and Al tore down the hall, robes billowing behind them. Rose turned sharply left and Al stumbled as he tried to keep up. Rose descended steps of the staircases two at a time, pushing students out of her way as she ran. Her brain was spinning, trying to figure out a speedy way to get to Albany's school before it was too late. She pushed open the heavy doors of the school like they were made of feathers. Then she paused. Al doubled over, trying to catch his breath.

Twyla had told Rose that it had taken her roughly half an hour to get to Albany's school on a Hippogriff. Rose needed to get their quicker. She couldn't Apparate, since Hogwarts had charms against that. Broomsticks were much too slow. But what was fast enough?

A sudden loud cry erupted from the woods and Rose saw a black thing fly above the trees, then land out of sight. It had had a black coat with bat like wings and no fat, almost like it was just a skeleton with some skin. A Thestral.

But why could Rose see them? Then she remembered. Last year at the Battle of the Tower, some of Albany's followers had died. Rose had seen them fall. She had seen their glassy eyes and still chests. She had seen death. So that meant she could see Thestrals. Hopefully that meant that Al could see them too.

Rose grabbed her cousin and ran into the woods, often screeching, trying to imitate the cry of a Thestral. They traveled deep into the forest, the only light being their wands.

"Rose, can you please tell me the plan?" Al mumbled as he tripped over a tree root. Rose just let loose another cry. This time they got a response. Rose smiled and charged further into the forest, faster than before. "Or not." Al ran to catch up with his cousin. When he got there, he saw her petting the nose of a large black horse-like animal. "What are those?"

"Thestrals," Rose replied. "They'll be giving us a ride to Albany's school."

"Thestrals?" Al cried out in shock.

"Yes, Al. We saw...we saw people die last year," Rose sighed. She led the Thestral she was petting over to stomp and climbed onto his back. "Are you coming?"

"Are you sure there's no other way?" Al croaked out, eyeing the Thestral's skeleton shape and sharp white teeth.

"Do you want to save Twyla or not?" Rose demanded. Al frowned, debated the idea in his head for a moment, and then hopped onto a Thestral. "Ready? Let's go!" Rose kicked her legs into the Thestral's hindquarters and he took off, Al's Thestral close behind.


	17. A Rescue Mission

Chapter Seventeen: A Rescue Mission

SS was already standing up when Hope crashed onto the moist ground of the chamber's entrance hall. He held his wand up, the tip already alight, and assessed the dreary hallway as Hope stood up and winced when the water soaked her socks.

"I'm pretty sure this place in underneath the lake," SS observed and spun towards the only way forward. "We go that way?"

"Yep," Hope responded and lighted her wand. The two narrow beams were barely enough to see by. A muffled shout came from that direction.

"We better hurry," SS grumbled and started to run forward. Hope dashed after him.

"But we have to be careful," Hope added. SS didn't acknowledge her, but trudged on. The climbed over old crumbling basilisk skins and chunks of rock. SS had a aura about him, a brash and angry air. Hope was concerned for him as well as herself. Eventually she would have to tell SS who her father was and why she could enter this place. Would he resent her when he learned that her father had tortured his.

"We're close," SS muttered when they began to see grayish light ahead. They reached the entrance to the chamber. Hope hissed at the snakes adorning the door and it swung open. SS started to march bravely in but Hope yanked him behind one of the stone snake pillars so that they were hidden.

"Hurry up, Kim!" Luff yelled and SS flinched, struggling against Hope's grip on his arm.

"Choose your battles," she whispered to him, repeating the advice he had failed to heed on Halloween. "We have to wait until we know their plan."

"But...Ferna," SS moaned as he craned his neck. Hope looked out, saw nothing, and dragged SS to the next pillar. From there they could see the rest of the chamber.

"She's right there. She's fine," Hope assured him, pointing. Ferna was laying on the chamber's floor, at the feet of Salazar Slytherin, guarded by Luff who was leaning against the statue. Her copper hair was splayed out, tinged with blood. Her eyes were closed and the blood running off her arms mingled with the water on the floor. But her chest was rising and falling. She was still alive.

Hope's attention was snagged Kim who was fiddling with the boring box that Hope had ignored last time she was here. Kim had opened the box and was blocking SS and Hope's view of what was inside.

"Come her for a second," Kim called to Luff and the boy walked over. Kim gave his friend the lid of the box and then turned back to it. Hope decided to seize to opportunity.

"Go get Ferna, then head out of here. I'm going to try and figure out what those two idiots are doing," Hope told SS. He nodded and started creeping towards the unconscious Ferna. His mind was so focused on not being noticed that his skin briefly glowed gold, then he disappeared, invisible. SS felt Ferna's wrist for a pulse, found one, than hoisted her over his shoulder, firefighter style. His magic seeped into her and she too turned invisible.

Meanwhile, Hope was creeping as close as she could towards Luff and Kim while staying hidden in the shadows. Finally, they stepped back and Hope caught her breath. Inside the box was a nest containing a toad who was sitting on a white egg. A chicken egg. Luff and Kim were trying to hatch a Basilisk.

"It's almost time," Kim said excitedly as cracks began to from on the egg's shell. The toad croaked and hopped off it. Kim and Luff leaned in while Hope leaned back. More cracks appeared and a piece of shell fell. A tiny green head with a scarlet plume poked out. Its eyes were closed and wouldn't open for another year, which explained why Luff and Kim were staring at it without fear. The serpent slithered out of the egg. He was about as thick as a rope, at least four feet long. His scales where bright green and shiny white fangs scraped the moist floor as he sniffed around blindly.

"Yes!" Luff cried out and pumped his fist in victory. "And now he shall feast on magical flesh and develop a taste for it. Then we'll unleash him on the students!"

"Sh!" Kim hissed. "Don't reveal _all_ our plans."

"Relax," Luff insisted. "No one's here. Now, to the prisoner!" He turned where Ferna had been but all he saw was some tile stained with blood. Luff's face turned red and he whirled around the front of the chamber. "Someone is here."

"Who? No one can get into the chamber except for…," Kim's voice tampered off as he realized something. "That Slytherin girl. Hope."

"And where she goes, her friends follow," Luff growled. A sound suddenly bounced down the chamber, the sound of someone stumbling. Both boys whirled around to the front of the chamber, their wands raised. SS was about to be caught. Hope swallowed, knowing what she had to do, but hoping that she could do it.

"Hello," Hope shouted and stepped out of the shadows. Luff and Kim turned to her, eyes wide.

"What do you want, snake?" Luff demanded, puffing out his chest. But Hope saw the trembling of his hand. He was afraid.

"I want to know why you created a monster that I can control," Hope replied with a smirk, head held high. She pranced towards the boys, her own wand held in her hand by her side. Kim's wand unleashed red sparks that fell to the ground harmlessly. She chuckled and began to walk around them.

"PETRIFICUS TOTALUS!" Luff yelled as she got closer to the baby Basilisk. Hope flicked her wand lazily and deflected the spell.

"Honestly, can't you two do any better," she laughed. "Didn't Albany choose you two idiots to do this job for a reason?"

"We don't know anything about Albany," Kim quickly protested. Hope just chuckled and kneeled down, still a ways away from the Basilisk.

"STUPEFY!" Luff screamed. Hope jabbed her wand at him and he flew back into one of the snake pillars, groaning as he fell to the ground. One down, one to go.

"Hey!" Kim cried out in shock, staring at his bruised and beaten friend.

"Did you really think you could stop me?" Hope asked, hand on hip. Kim turned back to her, eyes narrowed.

"No," he answered, tone angry. "But she can." He waved to the entrance to the chamber and Hope gulped. It was Madame Heydt, the librarian. Her heels clipped along the tile and her new purple robes swished around her ankles. She straightened her spectacles as she approached and coughed into her hand that held her long wand. Hope stood up.

"Madame Heydt?" she gaped, not understanding.

"Hello, dear," the librarian responded, her thin lips curled into a smile. "I can see you are quite stunned. Pity that you never tasked one of your spies to follow _me_ around."

"What?"

"You may have had spies but so did Albany. It was very stupid of you children to plot your schemes in a public place. Did you really think you four could stop Albany?" the librarian chuckled. Her thin blond hair was pulled back into a bun that jiggled whenever she spoke.

"You're working for Albany. You knew about Ferna," Hope realized. "You told Albany about Twyla."

"Twyla?" Kim wondered. "Was she a spy?"

"And here we thought she was just messaging family back home," Madame Heydt simpered. "Kim, go message Albany at once."

"Right," he replied, but paused. "What about Luff?"

"I will heal him later," Madame Heydt snipped. Kim nodded and ran out of the chamber. Hope's eyes followed him and she knew she only had moments to stop him. She yelled out in protest and waved her wand at the door to the chamber. The stones came crashing down, sealing all of them inside the dank room. Hope was praying that SS and Ferna had already gotten out.

"You foolish girl," Madame Heydt growled at her. "Now you will know true pain."

"Do your worst," Hope hissed back, her dark eyes narrowed into slits.

* * *

SS slammed jumped when he heard the crashes behind him. He had reached the pipe and was waiting for Hope when he heard it. He ran off down the hall and saw that the entrance to the chamber had been filled with stones. He couldn't get back in and Hope couldn't get back out. Angrily, SS slammed his fists against the stone. Hope needed him. If this much damage had happened already, then he couldn't imagine what was happening to his friend, all because he had insisted on saving Ferna.

"SS?" a voice gasped and the blonde spun around. Standing behind him, wands held up for light, was Professor Higglebottom and Professor Venus. Never in his whole life had SS been happy to see teachers. He rushed towards them, fear thumping his heart, and told them everything that had happened.

"We saw the girl," Professor Venus told him when SS finished. "I put a protection spell on her so she can't be harmed further. She's safe."

"Thank you," SS sighed.

"It was foolish of you children to do this without us," Professor Higglebottom groaned and the scarf around her waist turned red. "But I understand that you had little time."

"We've got to do something," SS insisted.

"Agreed," Professor Venus replied. "I will go find Rose and Al-"

"No, Madeline, I will go find them. You will help SS raise this stone and go help Hope. She's in danger, I can sense it," Professor Higglebottom interrupted. The curly haired witch looked like she wanted to say something but nodded instead.

"But I can't lift _any_ of this rock," SS protested, feeling useless. His face fell into his cool palms. "This all my fault. I was the one who insisted we save Ferna."

"SS, wanting to save someone from a fate they do not deserve is a noble trait. You should not _ever_ be ashamed of it," Professor Venus assured him as she placed her hand on his shoulder.

"And as for not being able to raise this rock, you are mistaken. You have a great magical ability and will certainly be able to lift it," Professor Higglebottom told him. SS's brows crinkled in confusion. "Certainly by now you know who you are." SS shook his head and the frizzy haired witch rolled her eyes. "Rose is descended from Rowena Ravenclaw. Albus is a child of Helga Hufflepuff. You, SS, are descended from Godric Gryffindor, thanks to your mother's blood."

"What?" SS gaped.

"You heard me. You are a son of the lion. You are more than capable of lifting this rock," Professor Higglebottom responded and turned around to go back. "I must go find the others. Good luck." Then she ran off. SS was still reeling when Professor Venus tapped his arm.

"SS, I know that was a lot to take in, but we need to hurry," she told him. SS nodded numbly and turned to face the pile of rocks. Together, the teacher and the student raised their wands. Three minutes later, a hole the size of a person had been formed in the rocks. Professor Venus turned to SS and smiled. "After you."


	18. Alphenberg

Chapter Eighteen: Alphenberg

Rose directed her Thestral to the roof of the ruined mansion. A stone gazebo was placed on the roof. As soon as she and Al climbed off their backs, they flew to the ground to munch on grass. Rose spun around, taking it all in. Half the mansion was in ruins while the other half gleamed with magic. On the ground where prowling wolves, defending the castle. And in the stone gazebo was a shadow of a person. Rose crept forward, over to the entryway and peeked in. A hulking boy with brown hair, about thirteen, was watching the sky, his back towards Rose. Al hung back, letting his cousin do her thing.

The boy turned around and Rose stifled a gasp. It was Atwood, one of James's friends. Atwood's eyes saw Rose in the dark and he opened his mouth, no doubt about to yell for backup. Rose reacted quickly.

"STUPEFY!" she whispered, wand pointed at Atwood. His eyes rolled as the spell hit him and he slumped to the floor. Rose gestured to Al and they both ran into the circular room. Rose leaned over her victim and pulled off a white wolf pin, just like the one Twyla had shown her. As soon as Rose's fingers touched the cool metal, she heard a voice, a voice that had haunted her nightmares for a year.

"Stanton Atwood, James Potter will be up in a moment to relieve you. You are free to head back to your barracks after that," Asphodel's voice said in Rose's mind. She jumped and dropped the pin. Al gave her a confused look and Rose forced herself to calm down. They had to find Twyla.

"The pin's a communication device. Someone is coming up," Rose explained, not telling the whole truth. She knew if Al knew his brother was coming up then he would lose focus. "Put on Atwood's robes. I'm going to hide in the shadows outside, then stun him."

"Okay," Al answered and did as he was told. Rose went back out into the cold night and hid. Moments later, she heard footsteps. In front of the stone gazebo, a few feet away, was a rectangular hole with stairs that no doubt led to the school. Rose raised her wand in preparation and saw James appear. He walked closer and Rose began to lose her nerve when she saw his dark purple and white robes paired with his purple tie and white shoes. For the first time ever, his red hair was clipped short and styled. His face was chiseled and he seemed older.

"James?" Al called out when he saw his brother, his voice a mess of emotions. James froze and Rose cursed. An excited gleam had entered James's eye. His finger rose to the white wolf pin on his tie. When he touched it, it glowed white.

"Alpha, you're never going to-" James cried out eagerly. Rose stood up and flicked her wand.

"STUPEFY!" she exclaimed and James fell to the ground. Rose dashed forward and unpinned the wolf. Asphodel's voice was speaking.

"James?" she growled, annoyed. "James, are you still there?" Silence. "Another prank, I suppose. Don't do it again. And make sure to see me after your shift. Remember, your already on probation."

"James?" Al muttered, staring at his brother's unconscious form. Rose slipped the pin in her pocket and dragged James into the stone room. She rolled him on top of Atwood and took of James's robes, exchanging them for her own. Underneath of his robes, he wore a white shirt and dark purple pants. He really had gone over to the dark side.

"Al, I'm sorry, but we have to move fast," Rose told her cousin, her volume low. Al swallowed, nodded once, than looked at his cousin in purple.

"We'll be recognized," Al pointed out. Rose sighed and racked her wand through her frizzy red hair in frustration.

"We need to blend in," she muttered. As she said those words, a tingle raced down her scalp. In a flash of blue sparkles, Rose's hair become chestnut brown, sleek and shiny. It rested just under her shoulders. Al's eyes widened and Rose nearly screamed aloud when she saw the locks. "What the?"

"Maybe it has something to do with your ancestor," Al suggested. Rose's eyes widened as she looked at the tip of her wand. It was glowing blue. Sensing that Al was right, she tapped her face. Tingles raced down her skin and her eyebrows became brown and pointed. Her lips plumped up and her teeth shrank while her eyes turned brown and freckles sprinkled themselves on her cheeks.

"Do I look different?" Rose asked Al and spun around.

"I wouldn't know you if I didn't know you," Al admitted. Rose glanced at herself in the glass windows and saw that she still had the same facial structure. Riding high on her success, Rose tapped Al's face. His hair became short and brown while his eyebrows transformed to match. His eyes became big and brown, just like his brother's, while his cheeks thinned, making him look like Rose's brother.

"Well done, Rose," she congratulated herself, smiling. Then she grabbed her transformed cousin's wrist and dragged him outside and down the stairs into the mansion. "We have to hurry."

* * *

Rose raced down the stairs, searching the ceiling. She and Al passed a few students who didn't pay them a second glance. Finally, Rose found what she was looking for. A ventilation shaft in the newer part of the mansion. Rose levitated herself up, took off the cover, and shimmied in. Al climbed in after her and they set off.

"Do you know where we're going?" Al asked her as he spat out a cobweb he had run into.

"The middle. Twyla once told me that all the important stuff, like meetings and punishment, happen in the throne room in the middle of the mansion," Rose replied and crawled faster.

Soon, they arrived in the throne room. Its walls were circular and decorated with paintings of Albany surrounded by wizards and wolves. A white marble throne sat on a dais in the middle, right under the dome ceiling that was decorated with shiny white panels. Asphodel was seated on the step of the dais, her wolf ears sitting on her pale haired head, her pale blue eyes focused on the people in front of her. Twyla stood there, arms bound by rope with Rachel standing behind her, wand pointed at her back. Despite all of this, Twyla showed no fear.

"So, you think it's fun to communicate with people _outside_ of Alphenberg?" Asphodel demanded, holding up the coin that Rose had given Twyla to stay in touch with.

"Alphenberg?" Al muttered, confused.

"The name of the school. Also Albany's last name," Rose whispered back and crept down an incline in the vents that led her to a flat part near the floor. She peeked out of a vent covering, watching the procedure.

"Answer me!" Asphodel yelled, her fists shaking with fury. Twyla just raised an eyebrow. "Perhaps you would like Rachel to demonstrate her displeasure with you again?" That's when Rose noticed the bleeding cuts and bruises on Twyla's dark skin. She had been tortured.

"I was only trying to get in touch with my little brother," Twyla lied. "He'll be starting Hogwarts next year and I wanted him to come here. But I think he may have lost his coin. They're part of a set, you know, and if I carve words into the coin's surface then his coin will become engraved as well."

"Rachel, does she have a brother?" Asphodel asked the brunette, who frowned and jabbed her wand into Twyla's back.

"Unfortunately, she does," Rachel growled. Asphodel's eyes narrowed as she looked at Twyla.

"You have an air of betrayal around you, Omega," Asphodel sneered and stepped of the dais, slinking towards her victim. "You've betrayed Alphenberg, I know it."

"Do you have any proof?" Twyla replied, voice calm, but her limbs were shaking. Rose gripped her wand but she was nervous. When would be the right time to intervene?

"No," Asphodel admitted and curled Twyla's dark locks around her pale fingers. "But I will. I haven't trusted you since the day you got here, Omega. You were always to close to the little snake. Mark my words, we will get the truth. Because I am calling on the Alpha Supreme!"

"What?" Rachel gasped in shock. Fear flashed in Twyla's eyes and Rose had a sudden suspicion on who the Alpha Supreme was. Asphodel walked back the dais and stood before the white marble throne, arms raised.

"Oh, great Alpha, our queen. Hear my call, hear my voice. I beg you, come and find the truth. Come and lead our wolf pack. I seek your wisdom, oh great one," Asphodel called out, her wand sending a blinding white light upwards, into the white dome. A clap of thunder shook the room and a familiar purple ghost appeared on the throne. Al grasped Rose's hand in fear.

"What?" Albany drawled. She was still as horrible as ever, with her crown of thorns and revealing robes. Her stormy purple form seemed to glow, casting the room in a dim purple light.

"Alpha Supreme, this Omega has been caught sending information out of Alphenberg. She claims to be recruiting her brother," Asphodel explained, kneeling before the ghost. But Albany wasn't listening. Her eyes were searching the room, looking for something only she could see. Suddenly, her eyes locked onto Rose and Al's hiding spot. Fear washed over them, cold as ice. Al's breath became panicky while Rose kicked him to shut up.

"Alpha, are you aware that you are being watched?" Albany whispered. Asphodel's pale eyebrows creased.

"My queen?" she asked, confused. Albany raised a purple arm and pointed at Rose and Al's hiding spot.

"Right there. The raven and the badger," Albany growled. Asphodel whirled around and cast a spell, causing the wall to blast open. Rose and Al were exposed as their disguises had faded. "Hello, old friends."

"What do you want, Albany?" Rose demanded as she stood, trying to look brave, but shaking on the inside. Albany laughed.

"I think the question should be, what do _you_ want?" Albany replied, her lips in a smirk. She nodded towards Twyla, whose eyes had become very large. "Is this girl a friend of yours?"

"No. I would never be their friend, even if they begged," Twyla hurriedly replied. Albany smiled at her.

"Oh, darling, don't you know that I can detect a lie from a mile away?" Albany chuckled. "You were not communicating with your brother. My guess is that you were passing information to these two."

Dread filled Rose's stomach. They needed to get out of here. Her eyes began assessing every little thing, her brain going millions of miles a minute. Al was trying his best to keep it together but he was starting to crack. Albany had been a source of fear for a year and she had been the one who had corrupted his brother. Al wasn't ready to face her. He feared he never would be able to.

"Any last words?" Asphodel chuckled as she raised her wand, the resurrection stone in her other hand, ready to exchange a life for Albany's. "I think I'll start with your little spy." She turned toward Twyla and something snapped in Al. He had promise Hope that he would bring Twyla home safely and he wasn't about to let her down.

"No," Rose gasped and dug in her robes, searching for her wand.

"AVADA-" Asphodel began. Twyla backed up into Rachel who shoved her forward. Al dove towards Twyla and spread his arms wide. "KEDEVRA!" Green light shot forward.

"PROTEGO!" Al yelled and a giant yellow dome expanded over him and Twyla. The spell bounced off harmlessly. Asphodel growled in anger. Rose shut a stunning spell at Rachel and knocked her out. Albany screamed in anger while Asphodel advanced.

"We have to go!" Rose yelled and ran back to the vents. Twyla followed while Al lagged behind, still maintaining his shield. Asphodel ran after them while Albany shouted to her students to stop the intruders.

Rose called forward but quickly came to a steep incline that they wouldn't be able to climb. Asphodel was closing in, blasting a holes in the vents to find them.

"She's getting closer," Al muttered, the yellow shield shimmering around him. Rose screamed in frustration, flicking her wand, and suddenly the entire group was shot straight into the air, along the vents, and was spit onto the roof.

"Hurry up!" Rose yelled, not caring to gape over her awesome magical ability. She ran to the edge of the roof, bathed in the golden glow of sunrise, and whistled. The two Thestrals flew onto the roof and let out a shriek as Asphodel charged up onto the roof followed by Albany and most of the school. Al twirled his wand, strengthening his shield, buying his friends time.

"Go! I'll keep them occupied!" Al called to the girls. Rose nodded and helped Twyla onto a Thestral.

"I hate Thestrals," Twyla muttered as she felt the animal that she could not see. Rose climbed onto the other Thestral.

"Al, come on!" she yelled, watching as Albany's forces shot a rainbow of spells at her cousin. They all bounced off the shield, but Rose could tell he was struggling to keep it up. Al walked slowly backward and climbed one-handed onto Rose's Thestral. She nudged the animal and he took off into the sky, Twyla's following close behind.

"We did it!" Al cried out in victory, relieved to be leaving the ruined mansion. Just then, a beam of green light was shot into the sky and hit Twyla's Thestral. The animal squawked and died, then began to plummet towards the earth. Twyla screamed while Rose dove after her, trying to save her. But then Rachel swooped in on a broomstick, caught Twyla around the middle, and began to fly back to the mansion as Asphodel chased Al and Rose, vengeance in her eyes. She raised her wand but was blasted back by a blue jet of light. Rose turned and saw Professor Higglebottom flying towards them, riding a Hippogriff.

"We need to go!" she called to them. Al shook his head.

"We need to save Twyla," he protested.

"We can't!" Professor Higglebottom told him. "We don't have enough power."

"We can't leave her behind!" Al yelled. But the teacher ignored him, reached out and grabbed his and Rose's hand, then closed her eyes and apparated them back home.


	19. The EndFor Now

Chapter Nineteen: The End...For Now

Hope ducked behind the last remaining snake pillar, limping on her sprained ankle. For what seemed like years, she and Madame Heydt had been dueling, and while Hope had inflicted just as much damage on the librarian as she had on her, Hope knew it was just a matter of time before she failed. Her strength came from her friends. When they were all together, they could do anything, just like last year. But no help was coming. Hope had sealed the entrance. She just hoped that she could take down Madame Heydt with her when she fell.

"Come on, little snake. Don't you want to play," the librarian taunted. Hope counted to ten then raised her wand.

"BOMBARDAR!" she yelled and a rock near Kim exploded, blasting rubble into his skin. He was trying to dig a way out while Luff mumbled, half conscious, on the floor. Madame Heydt laughed.

"Is that the best you got?" she giggled and sent a blast of green her way. Hope flicked it aside with her wand, focusing on the baby Basilisk slithering around, feeling its new surroundings.

" _Hello_ ," Hope called out to it in parseltonuge. " _Do you think you could help me?_ "

"I'm not a snake, girl! Your snake tongue can't charm me!" Madame Heydt roared and fired another spell, blasting Hope closer to the snake. She turned around and blasted one of the pillars, burying Madame Heydt in a pile of rubble.

" _You are a friend_ _to snakes_ ," the Basilisk said and sniffed Hope's hair. " _I can sense it._ "

" _Please_ ," Hope whispered. " _Please help me stop her. I need to make sure my friends are okay._ "

" _You don't care about your own life,_ " the snake remarked. " _You only care about them._ "

" _They deserve to live. I should never have been created,_ " Hope cried as tears began to drip down her face. " _I'm just a recreation of something evil. But if you can help me then I can do something good._ "

" _If I help you then will you give me a home? I need someone,_ " the Basilisk crooned, rubbing against her cheek.

"Yes," Hope answered and petted his scales. He was smooth and warm, cuddly and kind. He reminded her of a snake she had met as a child.

"Die, snake!" Madame Heydt yelled as she emerged from the rocks, her body littered with bleeding cuts. The Basilisk roared, showing off his white fangs, sniffed the air, and slithered towards her. A beam of green light shot from Madame Heydt's wand but Hope made no move to defend herself. She would right the wrong of her father by ending his legacy once and for all.

"No!" a voice screamed and a bolt of red light intercepted the killing spell. Hope turned and saw SS, wand raised, charging over to her. Professor Venus was slapping cuffs onto Kim and Luff's wrists. She snapped their wands for good measure, than followed SS. "Don't hurt her!"

"You vile child!" Madame Heydt roared and cast a spell that he deflected. "You'll pay for this."

"No, I won't. Because I'm not going to lose. I'm a child of the lion!" SS responded. But before he could do anything, the Basilisk leaped up and bit Madame Heydt's arm. She screamed in pain and fell to the ground, sobbing. She kicked and she howled but nothing could stop the venom. In only minutes, she was dead. SS and Professor Venus stared in horror while the four-foot serpent slithered back to its master. Hope could barely breath, she was so stunned.

" _No, I only wanted you to stop her. Not kill her,_ " Hope moaned as he curled up by her feet.

" _My mistake. I'm sorry. If it's any consolation, I didn't like the taste of her. I think I may become a vegetarian,_ " the Basilisk replied and laid its head down on her knee. SS suddenly realized how close he was to Hope.

"Get back!" he yelled, brandishing his wand like a sword. Hope stepped in front of the snake.

"Don't hurt him. Hurt me. I was the one who asked him to stop Madame Heydt," Hope explained.

"You wanted to kill her?" SS gaped, stunned that his friend could have such a black heart.

"No, of course I didn't. He just didn't understand. It was a miscommunication," Hope protested.

"A miscommunication that cost our librarian her life," SS exclaimed. Hope was getting angrier by the minute.

"She was working for Albany. And if this keeps up, we may have to kill more of her followers," Hope shouted back.

"Children," Professor Venus interrupted. "Perhaps it is for the best. We can't keep every criminal in Azkaban. And Hope didn't mean to."

"Fine," SS bit out. "But what are we going to do with the Basilisk?"

"I'm keeping him," Hope said, hands on hips, ready for a fight. She leaned to one side, favoring her sprained ankle, as pain laced through her.

"What?" SS roared.

"You do seem to have control over him. However, Basilisks gain their deadly gazes when they are a year old. You'll have to keep him blindfolded."

"I know," Hope told her teacher then turned to her friend. "How's Ferna?"

"She'll live," SS sighed. "But Rose and Al aren't back yet."

"Let's go to my classroom to wait. I'll call Headmistress Caroban to take Luff and Kim to the Ministry. Everything will be fine," Professor Venus suggested. The two students nodded, exhaustion hitting them like a freight train. They stumbled out of the chamber and headed back to the castle.

* * *

SS and Hope dozed as the sun rose, waiting for their friends to return. Luff and Kim had mysteriously disappeared and Headmistress Caroban had decided to label Madame Heydt's death as a freak accident. Ferna had been taken to the Hospital Wing and was expected to make a full recovery. Hope had placed her new pet, who she decided to name Slinky, in a magic enclosure she had taken from Hagrid.

After about two hours, Professor Venus's door was thrown open and Professor Higglebottom entered, ushering in a nervous Al and Rose. They had failed and they were terrified of Hope would say.

"You're okay," Professor Venus sighed and hugged Professor Higglebottom. "I was so worried."

"The children almost didn't need my help," Professor Higglebottom admitted. SS got up and embraced Al and Rose. Hope looked around them, searching for her friend.

"What happened?" SS asked them as they all sat back down. Hope, however, remained standing.

"Where's Twyla?" Hope demanded. Rose bit her lip.

"We should probably start at the beginning," Al sighed.

* * *

After Al and Rose had finished their story, Hope stared out the window for a bit. She watched her fellow students lounging on the grass, enjoying another May day, laughing and studying for the exams that started tomorrow.

"It's fine. Not everyone can be saved," Hope finally answered. "I just wish it didn't have to be her."

"You're not mad?" Al asked, stunned.

"No," Hope answered. "Because I have my own story."

* * *

It took another hour for Hope to tell her tale. She started from when she had discovered the Chamber of Secrets and found out about her father. As soon as she stopped talking, Al reached out and hugged her tight. Hope relaxed into his embrace and a tear fell down her pale cheek.

"You are not a mistake and you are not like your father," Al assured her. "You're Hope."

"We couldn't have saved Ferna without you," SS added.

"We aren't going to treat you differently just because of your parent. Being the son of Harry Potter doesn't affect how you treat me, does it?" Al asked her. Hope smiled and shook her head.

"So this is why Albany hates us all. Because we're _all_ descended from the founders of Hogwarts," Rose muttered, finally understanding. Al sat back in his chair as they all looked at the two professors.

"Yes," Professor Venus admitted.

"And you two knew this whole time?" SS demanded, anger starting to grow.

"Yes," Professor Higglebottom sighed. "But we didn't want you finding out too soon. You had to be ready."

"So what happens now?" Al murmured.

"You take your exams. You go home for the summer. And we warn students about Albany. We'll stop her. But not today," Professor Higglebottom answered and turned from the students. "You should all be studying." The four of them shrugged then left. Professor Venus placed a hand on her friend's shoulder.

"Cassie, are you okay?" she asked.

"I'm fine. But the children were so close to dying. We must be more careful. They aren't ready yet," Cassandra answered. Madeline nodded in agreement.

"Did…Did you see _her_?" she whispered.

"I did," Cassandra breathed.

"And?"

"She is bent on revenge. We must keep your existence a secret. You could be a valuable asset to her or a horrible weakness. Do not worry. I will protect you."

"Thank you, old friend." Madeline and Cassandra stayed there for what seemed like years as they watched the students go about, ignorant and innocent, as they thought of the battle still to be fought.

* * *

Rose was top in every class. Al's hard work payed off and he got great grades. Hope wrote a letter home, warning her mother of her new pet. And SS enjoyed his last few days with the Quidditch team. When they left, they knew that next year would be harrowing. But they knew that it wouldn't be until next year. And for that, they were grateful.


End file.
